Special Events

Picnic at the Larson House 

Enjoy a picnic on the lawn of the Larson House Museum usually on the third Sunday in September, noon to 3 pm.  The menu is a traditional picnic plate of potato salad, baked beans, chips, hot dogs or sandwiches, lemonade and ice cream for dessert. Live musical entertainment, free tours, lawn games, scavenger hunts and chalk drawing for the children. Fun for the whole family!  NOTE:  There will be no picnic in 2023.  Look for this event again in 2024.

A Very Victorian Christmas

Our Very Victorian Christmas is a popular special event at the Larson House Museum at 6003 Exchange St. in McFarland WI.  Every room in the house is decorated.  As part of Christmas in the Village on the first Saturday in December, we are open from 10 am to 4 pm.  Free tours are given.  Fancy treats and hot beverages are served.  Christmas music is played on the piano from 10 am until 3 pm, a reading of “T’was the Night Before Christmas” is given at 3 pm followed by Christmas carols around the living room tree.

Every Sunday afternoon in December from 1 to 4 pm, the house is open for free tours, treats, and a reading of “T’was the Night Before Christmas” for the children.  (Note – the house will not be open Christmas Eve or New Year’s Eve.)

Strawberry Shortcake Social

The Strawberry Shortcake Social is an annual event at the the Larson House Museum at 6003 Exchange Street held in June from 1 to 4 pm and features McFarland’s best strawberry shortcake!  The strawberries are freshly picked and the shortcake is homemade. There is also live entertainment, lawn games and free tours of the Larson House.  Beverages and hot dogs are also served with all proceeds benefitting the McFarland Historical Society.  When the social falls on Father’s Day weekend, guests are encouraged to talk about their fathers.  What great, family friendly event.

Day Trips

Tours of other historical museums and others points of interest are planned for all members and friends, usually in August.  Tours have included Old World Wisconsin near Eagle, Wisconsin, the Rotary Gardens and Tallman House at Janesville, Wisconsin, and the World Circus Museum at Baraboo, Wisconsin.

Open House Sunday Afternoons

Open House

The McFarland Historical Society’s Museum, Norwegian Log Cabin and Farm Display at 5814 Main Street, and the Larson House Museum at 6003 Exchange Street are open to the public on Sunday afternoons from 1 to 4 pm from Memorial Day through September.  Admittance is free and donations are encouraged.  For tours by special appointment, contact Dale Marsden at 608-838-3992 for tours at the Main Street Museum  or Jane Licht at 608-234-2504 for Larson House tours.