News Release

“A Cravens Christmas Carol” Holiday Open House at the Cravens House

The Cravens House illuminated during the holiday open house program

NPS Photo

News Release Date: November 13, 2017

Contact: Kim Coons, 423-752-5213x139

Fort Oglethorpe, GA: On Friday, December 1, and on Saturday, December 2, Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park will present a Christmas Open House at the Cravens House, located on Lookout Mountain. The house will be decorated in a manner very similar to the Civil War era. This special holiday event will take place from 6 pm to 8 pm, with tours beginning every 30 minutes. Reservations are required. To make a reservation, and for more information about this event, please contact the Lookout Mountain Battlefield Visitor Center at 423-821-7786.

Christmas, 1862 – The holidays in 1862 were a time of hope. For wealthy southern families like the Cravens, there was reason for optimism that the war would soon end in victory, and soldiers like Jesse Cravens were hopeful that this would be their last Christmas in the army. Just a few days later, the Emancipation Proclamation was scheduled to take effect, and for the first time, enslaved people throughout the South could finally begin to see the end of their generational nightmare. Join us for this special program as we explore how the residents of Robert Cravens’ home on Lookout Mountain pondered their past, present, and future during this holiday season 155 years ago.