NEWBERRY — One of Newberry’s favorite holiday traditions is this weekend with the Newberry County Chamber of Commerce’s Tour of Homes.
The Chamber has been conducting the Tour of Homes since 2012, when they took it over from the Opera House Guild. Liz MacDonald, Chamber administrator, has been in charge of planning the Tour of Homes in those eight years.
“This has been a holiday tradition in Newberry for a long time,” she said. “Probably my favorite thing since doing this is meeting the people. I’ve met so many nice people who have bought tickets and come from other cities. It is a joy knowing you are doing something to make people have a good Christmas.”
This year, the tour is comprised of three homes and one church. This year, the wine and cheese reception will also be returning — to be held at the Old Newberry Hotel.
Layman Home (Summer Street)
The Layman home was built in 1901 by Gus and Frannie Summer for their family of six children. The original 160 acres was divided between the children. This two-story home, with a wraparound porch, is much like it was when the home was built. A few of the pieces of furniture in the home are from the furniture store that Gus Summer owned in Newberry — the location of Wells Fargo now.
This home is still owned by Summer descendants.
The Lister Home (Oak Street)
This home, known as the Hill House, was built between 1840 and 1855. It was originally a four room farmhouse, with a wide hall. The brick for the three-brick thick exterior and two-brick thick interior walls were probably made on site. Between 1880 and 1915 two additional rooms were added, and a final bedroom and bath were completed in 2015.
Hill House has been a working farm, a veterinary clinic and a music studio.
The Wiseman Home (Woodland Way)
This home was built in 1969 in the Williamsburg style. The den flooring is made from wood from the old Newberry Mill. The Wisemans have remodeled and expanded the kitchen and master bedroom suite.
The home will be decorated with thematic Christmas trees and homemade crafted ornaments.
St. Luke’s Episcopal Church (Main Street)
St. Luke’s congregation was organized in 1864. The property, where the current church stands, was obtained in 1855. The church was vandalized during the final years of the Civil War, and by 1866 the vestry decided to lock the doors and board up the windows — service resumed in 1869.
In 1984, the church was struck by a tornado, which destroyed the roof and much of the structural integrity. With help from many sources, the church was restored in the Gothic style of the original building.
Old Newberry Hotel (Main Street)
The hotel was built in 1878, a Romanesque Revival style. The hotel is a two-story structure of approximately 25,000 square feet. The Newberry Hotel, like the Newberry Opera House, was designed by G.L. Norman.
“Newberry County has beautiful homes and churches and this tour is the perfect chance to see some of the treasures to be found here,” said Michelle Long, Newberry County Chamber of Commerce executive director.
This year’s tour will have some changes compared to last year, including the return of a church on the tour.
“Some of the houses were going to take a while to go through, because they were so large, so we decided not to do a church last year. However, every other year we’ve had a church. People look forward to going into the churches, they really do,” MacDonald said.
This year, the wine and cheese reception — which MacDonald added two years ago to the tour — will be at the Old Newberry Hotel, with the refreshments provided by Steven W’s.
“It has been a wonderful success, everyone enjoys this addition to the tour,” she said. “We’ve moved it to the hotel, the McDonalds have been gracious enough to allow us to have it at the hotel — which was recently restored by them. There will be tours at the hotel that evening as well.”
MacDonald said the houses on the tour are relatively close to each other, and tickets will have a map on the back that will show their locations.
“All of the houses will be decorated for Christmas. The Hill House will have a saxophone player from Greenville performing, and Carlton Kinard and Friends will be preforming at the hotel,” she said. “The best part of this tour is there is no set order, you can visit whichever location you would like, when you like.”
One of the reasons the Tour of Homes is so successful, in MacDonald’s opinion, is because everyone loves looking at Christmas decorations.
“They love going in and seeing how people decorate their homes,” she said. “People get lots of ideas from going into other people’s homes.”
The tour is this Saturday, Dec. 14 from 4-8 p.m. Tickets are $30 and can be purchased at the Newberry County Chamber of Commerce (1209 Caldwell Street) or the Newberry Opera House (1201 McKibben Street).
“We put this money back into the community and the services we offer, so the money will help benefit our programs,” MacDonald said.