Lessons for Ladies

March 2012

In honor of Women’s History Month in March, the Sam Davis Home will feature a special month long tour titled Lessons for Ladies.  This tour will feature the domestic arts, etiquette, and education of women during the 19th century. Also highlighted on the tour will be the individual stories of prominent women who lived during this time as well as those who were so important to young Sam Davis’ life. Many women did not have the opportunity to tell their story during the 19th century in the United States. Now, their stories, everyday activities, and special occasion celebrations can be told during the Lessons for Ladies tour during the month of March at the Sam Davis Home.  This tour is offered for reservations made at least 24 hours in advance. 

Saturday, March 10 and March 17, 2012

Dress in your Sunday best and bring along your favorite teddy bear (or other stuffed animal or doll) as we invite you to attend the Teddy Bear Tea at the Sam Davis Home.  This tea party is a wonderful way for young ladies ages 4-10 to spend a few hours with their favorite bear and special lady, whether she is her mother, grandmother, aunt, older sister, or another.  Enjoy delectable treats and savory teas.  Create a fun craft for your teddy bear friend.  Cozy up with your teddy bear as you travel on an adventure in Story Time!  Tour the inside of the Sam Davis Home with Andromedia Davis as she shows you where the young ladies of the house once played and sipped tea.  Teddy Bear Teas will be held on March 10^th and 17^th from 10am-12pm and from 2pm-4pm.  With four tea times to choose from, this is an event that should not be missed!  Reservations are required with the admission price of $10 per guest, excluding teddy bears.  Reservations can be made by calling Meredith Lane at (615) 459-2341, or by emailing admin@samdavishome.org.  Please make reservations early, as this popular event fills quickly.

Easter Eggstravaganza

Saturday, April 7, 2012

Hop on over to the Sam Davis Home for the 12^th Annual Easter Eggstravaganza!  Continuing the community wide event the Davis family hosted many years ago, the Sam Davis Home will be featuring Easter activities from 10 am until 12 pm on Saturday, April 7, 2012.  The Easter Bunny always makes a special appearance and loves to see the plantation filled with children enjoying the games, face painting, and more!  Three egg hunts are scheduled for the morning activities: children ages 0-3 hunt at 10:30 a.m., ages 4-6 hunt at 11 a.m., and ages 7-10 hunt at 11:30 a.m.  Guided tours of the historic home will be offered every hour on the hour for a reduced price.  Bring your Easter basket and don’t forget to wear your best bonnet or handsome hat for this year’s Easter Eggstravaganza!  Admission is only $5 per vehicle.  Easter Eggstravaganza is a weather dependent event.

Sunday, April 8, 2012

Closed for Holiday

April 21, 2012  

An epic novel turned into an Academy Award winning film awaits you on Saturday, April 21, 2012.  This Southern classic has stolen many hearts throughout the centuries and continues its path straight into the Sam Davis Home’s Henry King Theater.  Let these beloved characters sweep you into another time; a time of love and hardships, curtains and turnips.

During Intermission, a feast of Southern barbecue will be offered to all guests on the covered Veranda.  Visit with other fans of this film as interesting facts arise throughout your meal.  Guests are not required but are welcome to dress in Civil War and antebellum attire or in memorabilia pertaining to the film and era.

Reserve your tickets to this year’s Southern Delight, Dinner and Movie Night before they’re “gone with the wind!”  The event is $25 per person and begins at 4:30 pm.  For more details about the movie and event, or to make the required reservations, please contact Meredith Lane through email at admin@samdavishome.org or by telephone at 615-459-2341.

Sam Davis Home Golf Tournament

April 27, 2012

The Sam Davis Home will host a Golf Tournament at the Smyrna Golf Course on Friday, April 27, 2012 with registration beginning at 11 a.m. and tee time at 1 p.m.  All proceeds will go to benefit the educational programs and historic structures at the Sam Davis Home.  In addition to a fun-filled day of golf, we plan to have areas for sponsorship banners, hole sponsors, door prizes, and other skill contests for the participants to enjoy.  If you are interested in participating as an individual or as part of a team, or you wish to be a sponsor, please contact the Sam Davis Home at (615) 459-2341 or visit www.samdavishome.org.

41st Annual Days on the Farm

May 10 & 11, 2012

Where can you find pigs in a pen, a blacksmith making tools, and a spinner who shows how wool is transformed into yarn?  You can find all that and more at the 41st Annual Days on the Farm hosted by the Sam Davis Home on May 10th and 11th.  This popular living history celebration will feature more than 20 demonstrations including how to make candles from hot wax and how soap was made from pig fat and lye.  With hands-on activities, find out what life was like as a Civil War soldier and how quilts were made to keep people warm during the cold winter months.  After you tour the historic home and visit the museum exhibits, stop by the gift shop to pick up a reproduction historical toy or some old-fashioned candy sticks.  All are welcome and encouraged to bring a picnic lunch and enjoy it under the trees while out on the grounds of this historic plantation.  Event hours are 9 a.m. until 1 p.m.  Admission is $5 per person.  Reservations are recommended for groups of 10 or more.  This is a weather dependent event.

Free Day In May

May 19, 2012

The Sam Davis Home joins other tourists sites of Rutherford County for a day of free admission.  The Sam Davis Home will be open from 10 am until 2 pm for visitors interested in walking through the Middle Tennessee Civil War History Museum and the historic Sam Davis Home.  Guides throughout the home will be dressed in period clothing.  There is a private event scheduled for the evening, so the buildings and grounds will close to the public at 2pm.

June 11-15, 2012, 9am - Noon  Registration Deadline May 25, 2012
Ages 12-16 (girls only)

Young ladies will be instructed in the fine arts of 19th Century womanhood such as dress, etiquette, sewing, dance, and much more. The young ladies are encouraged to dress in period dress as they live the mornings as girls might have 150 years ago.  Reservation forms can be found online at www.samdavishome.org on the Summer Camps page.  The registration deadline is May 25, 2012.

June 11-15, 2012, 9am - Noon  Registration Deadline May 25, 2012
Ages 9-15 (boys only)

The boys spend an active week complete with drills, camps, crafts, and games as they learn about the life of Civil War soldiers. History presenters bring the past alive for the boys. Period dress is optional.  Reservation forms can be found online at www.samdavishome.org on the Summer Camps page.  The registration deadline is May 25, 2012.

Apple Valley School Summer Camp

June 25 - 29, 2012, 9am - Noon (Deadline June 8 for registration)
Ages 8-12 (boys and girls)

"Students" role play as a member of families from long ago as they enjoy authentic lessons from 19th Century schools, make crafts, play games, sing, and enjoy the historic house and grounds. This is a very popular camp and will fill rapidly. Period costumes are optional.  Reservation forms can be found online at www.samdavishome.org on the Summer Camps page.  The registration deadline is June 8, 2012.

September 27 & 28, 2012

Now in its 25th year, Heritage Days celebrates the beginning of autumn with living history presentations, skilled artisans, live animals, music, and much, much more.  The event is held from 9:00am - 1:00pm on September 29 & 30, 2011.  All activities along with a limited house and museum tour are offered for students and the general public for the admission price of $5.00.  Reservations are recommended for groups of 10 or more.  Heritage Days is a weather dependent event.

A House in Mourning

October 2012

The Sam Davis Home will host "Cult of Mourning" which was at its peak during 1850-1890. The house will be prepared for a funeral, with mirrors draped in black cloth and clocks stopped at the time of death. View the Mourning Artifacts and learn the history of this practice to respect and mourn for the deceased.

Saturday, October 20, 2012

The Sam Davis Home invites guests to have a frightfully good time at A Frightful Night on Saturday, October 20, 2012.  The evening will begin with a catered dinner in the Creek House and continue into the movie theater within the Museum where a frightful film will be shown.  Following the end of the film, guests will embark on a haunted hayride on their journey to the front of the Sam Davis Home.  On the hayride as well as during the walking tour of the historic Sam Davis Home and outbuildings, guests will hear true haunting tales from the staff and volunteers who have experienced such things at the Sam Davis Home.  Reservations are required with the admission charge of $25 per person.  The event begins at 6 pm.  Please make reservations early, as this popular event fills quickly.

Ghost Tours

October 19-20, 2012 & October 26-27, 2012

Ghost Tours offers an answer to the commonly asked question: Is the Sam Davis Home haunted?  This storytelling event gives visitors a chance to hear a different tour of the historic house and property.  Visitors will first board a haunted hayride and hear tales of the property before being dropped off at the front walk of the historic Sam Davis Home.  Storytellers inside the house and outbuildings will share the hauntingly true tales experienced by visitors, staff, and volunteers as guests are guided along the walking tour.  The event begins at 7 pm with ghost tours (consisting of the haunted hayride and walking tour) departing about every fifteen minutes until 10 pm.  Admission is $5 per person and parental discretion is advised.  This event is not recommended for children under the age of ten.  Ghost Tours is a weather dependent event.

"It was a Civil War Christmas"

December 1, 2012

The Sam Davis Home will host a Christmas tour featuring living history during the event It Was a Civil Christmas on December 1, 2012. Take a look back in time as you watch the Davis family prepare their home for Christmas in 1862. Jane Simmons Davis will continue to uphold her family’s Christmas traditions even though the Civil War is making it more difficult to acquire special foods and decorations. The eldest boys are off at war, creating the need for younger siblings to take a more active role in some Christmas traditions. Although this living history event will occur only on December 1, the historic house will remain decorated throughout the Christmas season beginning the day after Thanksgiving. Christmas tours will be available for groups only and can be booked with advanced notice. This event is $5 per person and is only offered one day! For more information, please contact Meredith Lane at (615) 459-2341.

The house will be decorated for Christmas November 19, 2012 - December 31, 2012.