The Ellis County Historical Society will celebrate Christmas in the tradition of the Volga Germans this year during an Christmas Open House on Friday, Dec. 2, from 6:30pm to 9:30pm.

There will be free horse-drawn carriage rides — call (785) 628-2624 for your reservation — crafts for all ages and Volga German refreshments. The evening’s entertainment lineup consists of Crossroads Choir, Prairie Timbre, Wayne & Tammy Lang, Ellis Honor Choir, the FHSU String Quartet, and Randy Mader and Bill Wyse. The society will also be opening four new exhibits: A Volga German Christmas; Leora Stroup: Nursing Pioneer; Diseases and Cures of the Past; and The Musical History of Ellis County.

There will be unique gift opportunities, and a chance to buy tickets to win a beautiful, limited edition print of Chuck Poulsen Outfitter by the artist M.C. Poulsen. Raffle tickets are $5 each. Poulsen is a well-respected contemporary western artist. Prints of similar size and date can be purchased for approximately $1,000. In the gift shop, there will be Christmas items from both German and Russian traditions. The society will bring in Christmas-themed Matryoshka dolls for the occasion, as well as exquisite Christmas tree decorations and the most popular books that relate the story of the area’s Volga German immigrants.