NILES Open house features rare exhibits

NILES -- The Niles Historical Society will host a holiday open house at the Ward-Thomas Museum, complete with special exhibits.
The group will open the museum, at 503 Brown St., from 2 to 5 p.m. Sunday and again Jan. 4.
The Christmas Open House will be the last time the "Ladies of the White House" exhibit will be open to the public. The exhibit features 38 replicas of gowns worn by the country's first ladies during each inauguration.
The exhibit first made an appearance in 1976, when Erna Kautz, a professional costumer, worked with Mrs. Anthony Frasca and then-Mayor William A. Thorp to create the replicas in honor of the nation's bicentennial.
In addition to creating sketches of patterns from the original dresses on display at the Smithsonian Institute in Washington, D.C., members of the historical society also copied the hairstyles and accessories from each time period.
Other collections
Also featured at the museum during the open house is a collection of Lenox China plates from Nancy Malone. The exhibit is featured in the library.
This is a limited-edition series of fine China plates commemorating the origin and development of the Christmas tree tradition around the world.
The series began in 1991 and featured Germany, where the first Christmas tree was on display more than 300 years ago.
Each handcrafted ivory plate is decorated with 24-karat gold and colored with fir greens and decorations around the perimeter. A Christmas tree is showcased in the center of each plate, depicting different countries.
Admission to the open house is $2 for adults and free for children 12 and younger with an adult.
For information, call Audrey John, museum curator, at (330) 544-2143 or (330) 652-5927.