From now through mid-December, most of Horsham's calendar is run by two volunteer groups. Both call themselves "Friends." The Friends of Graeme Park run a National Historic Landmark on County Line Road that belongs to the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. The Friends of Horsham Library run the book sale and help fill the library's calendar on Babylon Road. How each group pays for its work decides what you'll pay to show up.
Graeme Park's 42 acres cost nothing to visit on any day of the year. Its evening programs are ticketed fundraisers, and a few sell early-bird pricing that has already expired by late October. Once you know which events are free, which take cash at the door, and which need a ticket ahead of time, you can plan the stretch from Halloween to the holidays.
A state landmark with a volunteer calendar
Graeme Park sits on County Line Road near Route 611. Its centerpiece, the Keith House, is a National Historic Landmark whose story begins in 1721. According to the site, the house has stayed "virtually intact since the late 18th century," and some rooms still have their original woodwork and paint finishes.
The Commonwealth owns the property. Day-to-day operation belongs to the Friends of Graeme Park, a nonprofit volunteer group. The Friends' own volunteer page says the group manages the site on behalf of the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission. It supplies the tour guides and runs the fundraising. Its board writes an annual plan of fundraising events, educational programs and site improvements. The gift shop, the 18th-century foodways program, the living history program and the events calendar are all "planned and executed by volunteers."
So the Halloween cocktail hour and the colonial Christmas tour you see advertised were planned and staffed by volunteers. That also explains the ticket prices, since the Friends list fundraising among their core jobs.
Free every day, open three days a week
The grounds and the house run on separate schedules, and that trips up first-time visitors.
Per the Graeme Park visit page:
- Grounds: free, open daily during daylight hours
- Keith House tours: Friday and Saturday 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Sunday noon to 4 p.m., with the last tour starting no later than 3 p.m.
- Visitors' Center, restrooms and gift shop: open only during those tour hours
- Tour admission: $8 regular, $6 for seniors 60+ and ages 6 to 18, free for ages 5 and under
A Tuesday-afternoon walk works fine, but the restrooms will be locked. The free part of the site is also the part that changes most in late fall. The property has open fields, a stream, a pond and wooded trails, and the site lists great blue herons, wild turkey, white-tailed deer and fox among its regulars. It calls out fall as one of the best seasons for color.
Free, pay at the door, or book ahead
Every event between now and mid-December falls into one of three groups. The library's events and the park grounds cost nothing. Graeme Park's daytime holiday tour takes cash at the door. The evening programs are ticketed through Zeffy, a platform available only to nonprofits. Graeme Park says Zeffy charges no fees, so the listed price is what you pay, and the optional tip it asks for at checkout really is optional.
| Date | Event | Where | How you get in |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fri, Oct 30, 9:30 to 10:15 a.m. | Horsham Halloween Parade | Horsham Township Library | Online registration |
| Fri, Oct 30, 7 to 10 p.m. | AMERICA 250: Spirits & Specters, Sleepy Hollow | Graeme Park | Ticket, $30 to $40 |
| Wed, Nov 11, 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. | Book & Jewelry Preview Sale | Horsham Township Library | Friends members only |
| Nov 12 to 14, library hours | Friends of Horsham Library Book & Jewelry Sale | Horsham Township Library | Walk in |
| Sat, Nov 14, 7 to 11 p.m. | Paranormal Investigation | Graeme Park | Ticket, $35 |
| Sat, Nov 28, 1 to 2:30 p.m. | Christmas in the Colonies | Graeme Park | Pay at door, $12 / $8 |
| Sat, Dec 5, 10:30 a.m. to noon | Santa Claus Visits the Library | Horsham Township Library | No registration |
| Sun, Dec 6, 11 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. | Cookies & Cocoa with Santa & Mrs. Claus | Graeme Park | See event page |
| Tue, Dec 8, 6:30 p.m. | Project Blue Light | Horsham Township Community Center | Details posted closer to the date |
| Thu, Dec 17, 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. | Family Night: Gnome Craft | Horsham Township Library | Registration opens Nov 19 |
The paid events show how the Friends of Graeme Park think about a fundraiser. The Sleepy Hollow evening has three prices. Regular admission is $40 and includes one drink ticket, with a cash bar after that. Designated drivers pay $30. The $35 early-registration price ended October 9. Historian Mike Jesberger will tell the true story behind Washington Irving's Headless Horseman, with appetizers and live chamber music.
The November 14 Paranormal Investigation follows the same pattern. It's $35 per person now, since the discount period closed October 24. If a Saturday night with strangers doesn't appeal, the site also books private paranormal investigations through December 31, 2026. They run 7 to 11 p.m. on a night you agree on by email, at $40 per person, with a minimum of five people and a maximum of 20. A birthday version costs $45 per person.
The library's Friends follow the same model
A short drive across the township, the Horsham Township Library at 435 Babylon Road has a calendar built on the same kind of volunteer work. As Patch reported, the Friends of Horsham Library will hold their Book & Jewelry Sale November 12 through 14 in the library's Large Meeting Room during regular hours, with no registration needed. Friends members get first pick at a preview sale on Wednesday, November 11, from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m.
Graeme Park works the same way. Members get perks, the public gets a lower-key way in, and the people running the table are volunteers. At Graeme Park, members also pay the $8 child rate for Christmas in the Colonies instead of $12.
Two Halloweens and two Santas
Because the two calendars are planned separately, some days stack up and others mirror each other a day apart. A household that wants the whole season can work through it in order:
- Friday, October 30, morning and night. Bring the kids to the library's Halloween Parade from 9:30 to 10:15 a.m., and register online first. That evening, the adults can head to County Line Road for Sleepy Hollow from 7 to 10 p.m.
- The November 12 to 14 sale window. Browse the book and jewelry sale on whichever day suits you.
- Saturday, November 14. The public Paranormal Investigation runs 7 to 11 p.m. at Graeme Park.
- Saturday, November 28. Christmas in the Colonies works for the Thanksgiving weekend, when guests are still in town. You don't need a reservation, and tours leave every 15 minutes from 1:00 through 2:30.
- Saturday, December 5 and Sunday, December 6. Santa visits the library Saturday from 10:30 a.m. to noon with no registration. The next morning, Santa and Mrs. Claus host Cookies & Cocoa at Graeme Park from 11 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Ticket details are on the event page.
- Tuesday, December 8. Project Blue Light, a Horsham Township police memorial event, begins at 6:30 p.m. at the Community Center, 1025 Horsham Road. The township plans to post more details closer to December.
- Thursday, November 19, then Thursday, December 17. Registration for the PreK through grade 5 Gnome Craft family night opens November 19 at 10 a.m., four weeks before the 6:30 p.m. craft session.
Christmas in the Colonies is the one event that tells the most about the house itself. The Friends describe it this way on the Christmas in the Colonies event page:
"Graeme Park was home to the Scottish Keith and Graeme families, Irish and German servants, enslaved workers, and later the Quaker Penroses. As you tour the rooms of the Keith House, costumed volunteers will present these different traditions to you."
The afternoon also includes a historic dance demonstration in the parlor, chamber music in the Visitors' Center, and free cookies and hot chocolate. Tickets are $12 for ages 13 and up and $8 for kids 6 to 12 and members, paid at the door.
On the days with nothing scheduled
Most days between now and December, nothing is on the calendar at Graeme Park, and the grounds are open anyway. The trails, pond and stream are open during daylight hours at no cost, while the ticketed nights and weekend tours are where the Friends do their fundraising.
Have a favorite Graeme Park trail or a Horsham holiday tradition you never miss? I'd love to hear about it. Ariel Belli with the Art Herling Team In Blue Bell is always glad to talk Horsham, whether it's this season's calendar or what comes next for your home. Let's Connect: Start Your Move.
