Christmas decorations up and open on weekends

The Lawrence County Museum is decorated and open for the 2020 holiday season.

Hours are from 1-4 p.m. Saturday and Sunday until it closes for the year on Sunday, Dec. 13.

Masks and social distancing are required, due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The museum, located at 506 S. 6th St. in Ironton, is operated by the Lawrence County Historical Society and contains an extensive collection of items from the history of the county, including those related to notables such as Nannie Kelly Wright, America’s only female ironmaster and a resident of the city in the 1800s.

The museum is located in the Col. George Gray House. Gray, a Union veteran of the Civil War, acquired the home in 1878, eight years after its construction, and added many of its features, such as the tower and greenhouse.

Included in its collection is furniture that belonged to abolitionist John Rankin, the grandfather of Gray’s wife, Elizabeth.

Rankin, considered one of the most active conductors of the Underground Railroad and whose writings influenced prominent abolitionists such as William Lloyd Garrison and Harriet Beecher Stowe, died in the home in 1886 at the age of 93.

The museum typically organizes events such a sing-alongs, teas and the historic church and cemetery walks in Ironton.

While these have been canceled this year due to the pandemic, they hope to bring them back when things improve.

Organizers at the museum say they are hoping to get more young people involved, whether through school or family visits and invited all to come visit.