Christmas Tree Walk at the South Wood County Historical Museum

WISCONSIN RAPIDS, Wis. (WFHR / WIRI) – It’s the 9th annual Christmas Tree Walk at the South Wood County Historical Museum in Wisconsin Rapids.

Museum Curator Alison Bruener says this yearly tradition brings in people who’ve never visited before and they get a chance to see the old Witter home decked out for the festive season.

“It’s been really fun to see the community being able to come into the museum for something you might not usually expect at a historical museum,” says Bruener.

This is her first year as curator, though Bruener says she’s been involved with the museum for the past 10 years. She says the tree walk brings in people of all ages.

“ We have older members of our society that remember when this building was the TB Scott Public Library,” exclaimed Bruener. “So there’s a lot of nostalgia that comes in, but it’s also fun in that we’re making memories for the future right now.”

In the process of becoming ADA compliant

The South Wood County Historical Museum received a grant from the Legacy Foundation to help make their first floor accessible to all visitors. Bruener says they now have an ADA compliant ramp that allows entrance at the rear of the building. They were able to make enough progress this fall to make the entrance safe for use. The finishing touches will be added later. In the new year, they’ll be adding an ADA bathroom on the first floor and a second bathroom upstairs.

The Christmas Tree Walk brings the Witter home to life

Liz Stern is the Co-chair of the Christmas Tree Walk. She said this is her 7th year putting up trees at the museum and it’s a delight to see the Witter home transform.

“It just comes alive. You know, you come in here without the trees and it’s like, well, you have of course the exhibits and things,” says Stern. “But at Christmas time as each person brings their tree in to decorate. It just gets more and more exciting to see all the creative ideas people have and how beautiful it just, with all the lights and the tinsel, and it’s just gorgeous.”

What began around a decade ago with just 10 trees has grown to 27 this year. Stern said next year they hope to grow even more.

“And we’re always looking for more people to come and decorate trees or wreaths or whatever they have,” says Stern. “We have big trees, we have little trees. We have medium sized trees. You name it, we have it.”

The Tree Walk is open through December 14th from 12:00 PM to 6:00 PM daily. The South Wood County Historical Museum is located at 540 Third Street South in Wisconsin Rapids.