Last December, the horse-drawn carriages in Boalsburg stopped at 3 p.m. Santa and Mrs. Claus didn't arrive on the Diamond by fire truck until the evening, and the tree lighting came at 6 p.m. For a few hours in between, the village day thinned out between the afternoon program and the evening one.
This year the gap closes. In Harris Township's October 12 board agenda, Hometown Christmas is set for Saturday, December 5, and carriage rides run from 1 to 5 p.m. Activities on the Diamond run from 4 to 6:45 p.m. For the first time, the rides and the Diamond program overlap. The street plan was redrawn around that overlap.
A Different Closure on Main Street
The agenda item says the street closures are "slightly different this year to accommodate a longer period for carriage rides." The Boalsburg Village Historical Society asked to close West Main Street from Tennis Alley to Church Street, 3:30 to 7 p.m. That would leave the western part of the Diamond, in front of the Christmas tree, free of traffic. East Main Street and Church Street would stay open. Township vehicles would block the street, and the Historical Society also asked for the Boalsburg Fire Police to handle traffic.
The agenda recommends that the board approve both the closure on December 5 and the Fire Police request. If the closure goes forward as written, here's what changes on the ground:
- The tree side of the Diamond goes car-free at 3:30 p.m. That's 90 minutes before the carriages stop and half an hour before the Diamond program starts.
- Anyone coming from the east on East Main Street can still drive into the village.
- Church Street stays open as a route through, so the village isn't sealed off for the evening.
- The roadblock lifts at 7 p.m., 15 minutes after the Diamond program ends at 6:45.
The agenda also says Santa's mailbox will go up on the Diamond, in the township's right-of-way, and stay there for the whole holiday season. Children who miss Saturday can still mail a letter the following week.
Saturday, Side by Side
The table below compares the published pieces of last year's schedule with this year's. The 2025 column comes from StateCollege.com's coverage of the event. The 2026 column comes from the township agenda.
| 2025, Saturday, Dec. 6 | 2026, Saturday, Dec. 5 | |
|---|---|---|
| Carriage rides | Noon to 3 p.m. | 1 to 5 p.m. |
| Live reindeer | 1 to 4 p.m., next to the Harris Township office at 224 E. Main St. | 1 to 4 p.m., Township parking lot |
| Evening program | Entertainment from 4 p.m., tree lighting at 6 p.m. | Diamond activities 4 to 6:45 p.m. |
| Street closure | Temporary closures approved for evening events | West Main, Tennis Alley to Church St., 3:30 to 7 p.m., requested |
The reindeer hours didn't change. The carriages now start an hour later and run two hours longer, so the ride window grows from three hours to four. The agenda doesn't give a tree-lighting time for 2026.
There's one date discrepancy to know about. The Boalsburg Heritage Museum's events page lists its Hometown Christmas activities for "Saturday, December 6, 2026." December 6, 2026 falls on a Sunday. The township's Saturday, December 5 date matches the weekday.
What Last Year's Day Looked Like
The 2026 agenda lists only the main pieces of the day, so last year's program gives the rest of the picture. In 2025, breakfast with Santa was at the Boalsburg Fire Hall for $10 per person, in a 9:30 a.m. seating and an 11 a.m. seating. The historic blacksmith shop was open from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. A Cookie Crawl ran through the village. Participants bought a commemorative tin at A Basket Full, 121 E. Main St., then collected two cookies at each participating shop.
The evening program featured the Bellefonte Community Band and the town crier. The Harris Township Lions Club served coffee and hot cocoa. During the day there was a puppet show and story readings in the lower barn of the Boalsburg Heritage Museum, and Free-Range Band played on a front porch. St. John's United Church of Christ held an organ recital on its 1868 Durner tracker pipe organ.
The Heritage Museum's own page describes its part of the day as homemade cookies for sale, treats baked in the Summer Kitchen, Victorian ornament making, a puppet show in the barn, live holiday music and a raffle.
With the carriages now running to 5 p.m., the museum's barn and the shops on Main Street are no longer the only things to do while waiting for the Diamond to fill.
Why the Rest of the Weekend Is Outdoors
The second change comes from the Pennsylvania Military Museum at 51 Boal Ave. The museum's homepage says the building is temporarily closed for renovation, and that the parade grounds remain open and special events continue.
The Centre Daily Times reported that work began in December 2024 on what was planned as a 14-month, $3.4 million renovation. The paper reported that reopening is now expected in early 2027, according to museum director Chris Kuhns. The work centers on a new HVAC system, a geothermal system and a new vapor barrier for the walls. The paper also reported that after construction ends, the museum has to wait 90 days to confirm the HVAC system is working before artifacts come back. Then exhibit fabrication takes about nine months.
The museum's fall 2026 update says the building-envelope work is nearly finished. What's left is mostly corrective work, touch-ups and a thorough cleaning. The geothermal system needed a redesign, and staff are preparing to move more than 14,000 artifacts back into the building. The update gives no new reopening date.
So the museum's December programs happen on the grounds. The Ghost Front: A World War II Experience runs Saturday, December 5, and Sunday, December 6, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. It covers the Hürtgen Forest and the Battle of the Bulge in the winter of 1944, with foxhole displays on frontline life. Guided patrol tours start at 11 a.m., 1 p.m. and 3 p.m. The History Mystery Kid's Program is at noon, and a historic weapons demonstration is at 2 p.m. A 1940s Santa Claus will be at the pavilion for Christmas photos and candy. The museum encourages donations, and proceeds benefit the museum.
On Saturday, December 5, the 1940s Santa is at the pavilion until 4 p.m., the hour the Diamond program begins in the village.
Four Days, Friday Through Monday
Saturday sits in the middle of a longer stretch. Taken together, here is the village's first weekend in December:
- Friday, Dec. 4. Candlelight tours at Columbus Chapel & Boal Mansion Museum. Times are listed as to be determined.
- Saturday, Dec. 5. A second night of candlelight tours at the Boal Mansion. Hometown Christmas fills the village, with carriage rides from 1 to 5 p.m. and the Diamond program from 4 to 6:45 p.m. The Ghost Front runs 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on the Military Museum grounds.
- Sunday, Dec. 6. The Victorian Holiday Tea at the Boal Mansion, noon to 4 p.m. The Ghost Front's second day runs 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
- Monday, Dec. 7. The Military Museum's annual Pearl Harbor Remembrance Ceremony closes its season.
The Boal Mansion's events page says all event times and dates are subject to change. The Military Museum includes the same caution on its program listings. Later in the month, the Boal Mansion hosts a St. John the Evangelist Feast Day wine blessing and social on December 27 at 1 p.m.
The November Lead-In
Two November dates on Boal Avenue lead into that weekend. On November 12, the Military Museum's free fall lecture series ends with Dr. Walter Zapotoczny's "The 28th Infantry Division in the Battle of the Bulge." That's the same battle The Ghost Front covers three weeks later.
On Thanksgiving morning, Thursday, November 26, the Boalsburg Turkey Trot starts at 9 a.m. at the Pennsylvania Military Museum, 51 Boal Ave. Early packet pickup is Wednesday, November 25, from 2 to 6 p.m. at Saint Joseph's Catholic Academy, 901 Boalsburg Pike.
Between Thanksgiving morning and the first Monday in December, the museum's grounds host the Turkey Trot start, both days of The Ghost Front and the Pearl Harbor ceremony, with the building still closed.
Our team is based in Boalsburg, and this weekend is a big part of what the village is like in December. If you'd like to talk about what that means for your own plans, Annette Yorks is glad to help. Let's make your next move.
