Before Santa packs of soda and Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parades, the holiday season was rung in with homemade tree ornaments and hot cider.

The spirit of those humble seasonal tidings can be seen first hand at Farm House Museum.

The Victorian Holidays Celebration at Farm House began when Friends of the University Museums and volunteers arranged holiday decorations throughout 12 rooms of house.

Each year a theme is chosen. This year’s theme is “An Iowa Tradition.”

“What we are trying to show is the diversity of the backgrounds of people who lived in Iowa at the time,” said Mary Atherly, curator for Farm House Museum. “The trees have different patterns.”

Atherly said the decorations such as cookies are native to Scandinavia while the Christmas tree itself derives from Germany and England.

One particular tree which is on display in an upstairs bedroom exemplifies the pioneers’ conservation of resources.

The tree, stripped of it’s natural greenery, is covered with cotton. Because trees were scarce on the plains, trees were reused year after year and the branches decorated.

“The recycling tree shows the pioneers’ tradition of preserving what little they had,” Atherly said. “People kept everything and reused them.”

The main tree in the parlor is decorated with ornaments dated from 1880-1910, Atherly said.

“All those ornaments are authentic — not reproductions,” she said.

The ornaments were donated to the museum. They vary from fragile blown and spun glass ornaments to paper and cardboard decorations.

“They used what they had in the home to decorate the tree,” Atherly explained. “The spun glass ornaments are meant to look like angel hair and the paper stars were common in German homes.”

Popcorn also wraps around the tree, representative of household decorations. Atherly said nuts and berries would also have been seen on trees.

Tree decorations, Atherly explained, were much more personalized at the turn of the century. They depicted flags or photos of loved ones she said.

“Christmas wasn’t like it is today,” Atherly said. “Gifts and ornaments were made especially for people. Often, ornaments were given as gifts.”

She said the ornament-making process was often shared by the family. Children would cut up colorful magazines and paste the pictures to cardboard along with tinsel. Gifts were also often placed among the tree branches rather than under the tree Atherly said.

Atherly said when Farm House was a home, it had electricity at the turn of the century. Therefore, electric lights, which are reproductions, adorn the tree.

Greenery also lines mantles, mirrors and pictures in the house-turned-museum.

Another type of tree which can be found throughout the house is a “feather tree.”

The 18- to 24- inch trees are made of dyed animal feathers wrapped around wire. The type of tree originated in Germany, Atherly said.

“The tree in the library is a feather tree,” she said. “It was popular with immigrants because they could make it in their home.

“Also, the limbs fold up so they could be stored in trunks,” she added.

Sunday, Dec. 8, visitors to the museum can enjoy horse drawn sleigh rides around campus. Riders will be returned to Farm House where they can enjoy hot cider and cookies.

The following Sunday, Dec. 15, holiday music will be featured as part of the festivities.

Bell ringers from the Collegiate United Methodist Bell Choir will provide sounds of the season at 3 p.m. in the parlor of the museum.

Each Sunday will also include melodeon performances by Ames native Dorothy O’Connor.

Farm House Museum will be open Monday through Friday, 12 p.m. to 4 p.m. and Sunday 1-4 p.m. through Dec. 20.

The museum is located on Knoll Road north of Ross Hall. On-site parking is available. Admission is free. For more information on the Farm House Victorian Holiday call 294-3342.