Turn a Page on a Storybook Christmas at Stan Hywet’s Deck the Hall

On Christmas Eve 1946, 19 grandchildren circled around a 25-foot tree and a twinkling fire to listen to their grandfather F.A. Seiberling read The Night Before Christmas.  That favorite family story of the Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. co-founder is one of many re-created at Deck the Hall at Stan Hywet Hall & Gardens through Dec. 30. Recently named best historic home in the Midwest by the American Bus Association, the manor is covered with elaborate decor that transforms the rooms into life-sized storybook pages from The Gift of the Magi to The Grinch. Although the tour boasts 800,000 lights, a gingerbread garden and other festive fare, the magic happens in the Great Hall where the family basked in the tree’s glow and the children leapt at Santa’s sight. “You get to walk through a 101-year-old house that still has so much character,” says curator Julie Frey. “The decorations are another layer on top of that story.” 714 N. Portage Path, Akron, 330-836-5533, stanhywet.org