Events & Programs

Upcoming Events & Virtual Programs

Christmastide

December 10, 2022

5 – 8 PM

Come see Stratford Hall buildings and grounds decorated in holiday spirit, listen to colonial music by Ampersand in the Great Hall and drumming by Slam Stewart in the stone quarters, and step into the historic kitchen for a cooking demonstration with interpreter Dontavius Williams. Make a hand-punched tin ornament for your tree and enjoy ginger cookies and hot apple cider!

Stop by the Gift Shop for holiday shopping with a signature Stratford Hall Gift Basket, stocking stuffers, and much more. Visitors will receive a 10% discount in the Gift Shop and Friends of Stratford Members will receive a 20% discount on purchases.

Tickets:

Adults & Children ages 14 and older: $20

Children, ages 6-13: $10

Children, ages 5 & under: Free

Friends of Stratford Members: Free

Purchase tickets today!

Northern Neck Free Admission Days

December 11, 2022

Our gift to our neighbors this holiday season! Stratford Hall will be offering a Free Day for residents in the counties of Westmoreland, King George, Lancaster, Northumberland, Richmond, and Essex. On Sunday, December 11, residents of each county will have a day to visit Stratford Hall for free.

Explore the over 1,800 acres with access to the Great House, historic buildings, hiking trails, public beach area, gardens, Visitor Center, and Gift Shop. Be sure to stop by our newest exhibit, Stratford Hall at the Crossroads: Atlantic Cultures & the Creation of America, located in the Visitor Center.

Visit the Gift Shop for holiday shopping or to buy gift memberships to Stratford Hall! Northern Neck residents will receive a 10% discount in the Gift Shop and Friends of Stratford members receive a 20% discount on shop purchases during this free day.

‘Restless Genius’ – Arthur Lee & the Life of Purpose

December 20, 2022

7 PM EST

Virtual program via Zoom.

The youngest son of Thomas and Hannah Lee of Stratford Hall always made an impression on those he encountered in his several areas of expertise. To some he was a wrongly maligned patriot, to others a paranoid misfit—who was the real man behind these divided opinions? Join Stratford Hall’s new Director of Research and the Jessie Ball duPont Library. Dr. Gordon Blaine Steffey, as he commemorates the birthday of the man Benjamin Franklin called “that restless genius,” Arthur Lee.

This program will be held virtually via Zoom. We invite you to pay as you wish to support lectures like this and future programs at Stratford Hall.

Photo Credit: The New York Public Library Digital Collections

SAVE THE DATE:

May 6, 2023

Details to Come!

Fossil Hunting Excursions at Stratford Hall

Sunday, May 7, 2023 (Registration opens April 1, 2023)

Sunday, June 4, 2023 (Registration opens May 1, 2023)

Saturday, July 22, 2023 (Registration opens June 1, 2023)

Saturday, August 5, 2023 (Registration opens July 1, 2023)

Sunday, October 1, 2023 (Registration opens September 1, 2023)

Dating from the Miocene Epoch – approximately 17 to 10 million years ago, the Stratford Cliffs are part of a rare geological phenomenon ranking among the most important fossil research sites in the Mid-Atlantic region. Whether you are a seasoned collector, or this is your first experience, Stratford Hall is the place for you! Spend a day hunting for fossils along the shores of the Potomac, explore the Stratford Cliffs, and enjoy the beauty and tranquility of the great outdoors!

Excursions are rated at a moderately strenuous to strenuous activity level requiring long periods of walking, hiking, standing, stooping, and bending. If you wish to access the further extremities of the beach, this will include climbing over or under washed up debris or felled trees. Minimum age requirements for all fossil hunting excursions are 8 years old. Any participant under the age of 18 must be accompanied by an adult.

Event Time: 9:00 AM to 3:00 PM

Cost: $35 per adults and $30 per child (ages 8 to 13)

Age requirements: 8+ years of age

Availability: 40 slots (35 adults, 5 children)

Additional information will be provided via email prior to your visit. Please contact Kelly Childress at kchildress@stratfordhall.org with any questions regarding Stratford Hall’s fossil hunting excursions.

Christmastide Dinner with Denson’s Chesapeake Bay Farm to Table

Saturday, December 10

5 – 9 PM

Make it an evening to remember and dine with local catering company, Denson’s Chesapeake Bay Farm to Table, in the Stratford Hall Dining room on Saturday, December 10th. The four-course meal will include your choice of a starter course, soup or salad, an entree, and dessert. For an additional $60, add a sommelier selected wine pairing to each course. Holiday music will be performed on the piano and wine and beer will be available for purchase.

With wine pairings for each course: $160 per person
Without wine pairings: $100 per person

The Great House will be open from 5-8 p.m. on December 10th for the Christmastide event. Dinner guests can see the historic house and grounds decorated in holiday splendor for just $5.

For the full menu, please visit www.stratfordhall.org/Christmastide.

To make a reservation, please call 804-493-1967 or email lbrooks@stratfordhall.org.

Caesar’s Chocolate: The History and Legacy of one of Virginia’s Earliest Chocolate Makers

December 15, 2022

7 PM EST

Virtual program via Zoom.

Come join us for a cooking demonstration and discussion with Celebrity Chef, Christopher Scott, and Stratford Hall’s Resident Historical Interpreter, Dontavius Williams, as they make two chocolate dishes in our historic 1738 kitchen. Hosted by Stratford Hall’s Vice President of Collections & Visitor Engagement, Dr. Kelley Fanto Deetz, this program will discuss the history of Caesar, Stratford’s colonial chocolate maker and chef, highlighting the role of chocolate during the 18th century, and then pivot to the present with Chris Scott’s cooking demonstration.

This program will be offered virtually and pre-registration is required. We invite you to pay as you wish to support lectures like this and future programs at Stratford Hall.

Funded by Forrest E. Mars, Jr. Chocolate History Research Grant, Mars Wrigley.

Robert E. Lee and the Pursuit of Perfection

Saturday, January 14, 7 PM EST (Please note new event time)

This program will be offered in-person and virtually.

Robert E. Lee was often characterized as remote and not given to self-revelation. But that was part of a lifetime pattern, cast by the long shadow of his father, Light-Horse Harry Lee, in which Lee was driven to pursue perfection, independence and security. Only at the end of his life, as president of Washington College, did he bring these pursuits into harmony.

Join Dr. Allen Guelzo, Senior Research Scholar in the Council of the Humanities at Princeton University and Director, James Madison Program’s Initiative in Politics & Sportsmanship, as he leads this discussion. Guelzo is the author of “Robert E. Lee: A Life” published in 2021.

Pre-registration is required.

We invite you to pay as you wish to support lectures like this and future programs at Stratford Hall.

Hands On History Days

Friday, April 14, 2023

Saturday, April 15, 2023

Calling all educators! Are you a K-12 schoolteacher, an homeschool group organizer, or the leader to a community youth organization that’s interested in bringing your students to Stratford Hall? Come explore our 1,800-acre site by registering for one of our Hands On History Days. These educational programs include five 30-minute, experiential learning activities that allow students to explore different facets of Stratford through the lenses of history and science. Discover what life was like in colonial Virginia while taking a docent-facilitated audio tour of the Great House and historic area. Learn about colonial foodways and the influence of enslaved chefs on the creation of American cuisine while watching an 18^th-century cooking demonstration with Dontavius Williams. Experience the music of the African Diaspora through drumming demonstrations by Slam Stewart. And engage with our knowledgeable museum educators about the scientific studies of Paleontology and Archaeology at Stratford Hall.

Pre-registration is required. Space may be limited. Please contact Kelly Childress, Director of Education, at kchildress@stratfordhall.org or (804) 493-1972 with any questions regarding Stratford Hall’s educational programs. To register a group for one of our upcoming Hands On History Days please contact Matthew Torres, Programs Coordinator, at mtorres@stratfordhall.org or (804) 493-1380.

Can’t come to us, then let us come to you! Inquire about our in-person and virtual educational program opportunities today!