Dec
3
6:00 PM18:00

A Gilded Age Christmas Golden Gala Event

The Richards-DAR House Museum will host a Gilded Age Gala celebrating the era’s elegance, history, and women’s leadership. Inspired by nineteenth-century receptions, the evening will feature period-inspired décor, music, food, fashion, a self-guided museum tour, and stories of influential women who shaped American society.

The gala will spotlight Alva Vanderbilt, a prominent society leader known for lavish entertaining, architectural ambition, and later advocacy for women’s suffrage, and Mary Desha, an educator, reformer, and co-founder of the Daughters of the American Revolution. Although Desha was not from Mobile, she and Vanderbilt were cousins. Alva Vanderbilt was from Mobile, and their family connection highlights the enduring ties among local history, family, and civic engagement.

Guests will enjoy period-inspired hors d’oeuvres, desserts, wine, sparkling beverages, and punch, along with Gilded Age-inspired clothing displays, fictional historical letters, period-themed photo opportunities, and music.

Guests are encouraged to wear cocktail or Gilded Age-inspired attire.

The gala will celebrate the Richards-DAR House Museum’s role in preserving Mobile’s history and honoring women’s contributions to education, civic life, and historic preservation.

$75 per ticket. Each ticket includes unlimited tours of the Museum Dec 4-6 for ticket holder and one guest throughout the 3 day event. For ticket information, call 251-208-7320.

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Gilded Age Christmas Self Guided Tour of the Museum
Dec
4
to Dec 6

Gilded Age Christmas Self Guided Tour of the Museum

  • The Richards DAR House (map)
  • Google Calendar ICS

Step into the Gilded Age at the Richards-DAR House Museum and experience a special tour inspired by the elegance, history, and influential women of the era.

The tour will highlight Alva Vanderbilt, the Mobile-born society leader known for her elaborate entertaining, architectural influence, and later advocacy for women’s suffrage, along with her cousin Mary Desha, educator, reformer, and co-founder of the Daughters of the American Revolution.

Throughout the historic Richards-DAR House, visitors will discover Gilded Age-inspired décor, fashion, music, correspondence, and stories that bring the period to life while exploring the connections between Mobile, the Vanderbilt family, and the women who helped shape American society.

The experience celebrates the Richards-DAR House Museum’s role in preserving Mobile’s history and sharing the stories of women whose influence reached far beyond their own time.

Tickets cost is $15. For more information, call 251-208-7320.

Friday, Dec 4, 2026, 11am-3:30pm

Saturday, Dec 5, 2026, 10am-5pm

Sunday, Dec 6, 2026, 1pm-4pm

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Friends of the Richards-DAR House Museum Foundation Fundraiser
Jan
25
6:00 PM18:00

Friends of the Richards-DAR House Museum Foundation Fundraiser

January 25th information.jpg

Friends of the Richards-DAR House Museum Foundation fundraiser will occur on Saturday, January 25, 2020 from 6:00 PM to 9:00 PM. Friends of the Richards-DAR House Museum Foundation, a foundation group started this year to provide additional funds for large projects, is holding a special fundraiser to benefit it and Kate Duncan Smith School’s Lane Chapel. Delicious food, wonderful live music, and a silent auction will make this a very special event in support of two significant landmarks. Tickets are limited to 200 and the cost of each ticket is $50.00. If interested, contact the Richards-DAR House Museum at 251-208-7320.

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The Christmas Celebration
Dec
7
10:00 AM10:00

The Christmas Celebration

The Christmas Celebration is scheduled for Saturday, December 7, 2019 from 10:00 am to 4:00 pm and for Sunday, December 8, 2019 from 1:00 pm to 5:00 pm. The theme, “Two Hundred Years of Christmas in Alabama” will coincide with our bicentennial celebration and provide guests an opportunity to travel back in time and view items and decorations that would be appropriate for Christmases from 1819 to the present day. Of course, the two-day event will include scrumptious hors d’oeuvres, musical entertainment, guides dressed in period clothing depending on the era, a bake sale, and a visit with Santa, not to mention our well stocked gift shop for your Christmas shopping. The decorations remain in place for the entire month of December so if Alabama Daughters cannot attend the two-day event, they are encouraged to visit during the remainder of the month for a tour.

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