2018
Limited Edition Lighting Festival Ornament

Available at Barb’s Family Hair, Coffee Talk and Taylors Falls Bead Store
$12 – proceeds benefit the Taylors Falls Lighting Festival

This year’s ornament honors the beautiful St. Croix River. The St. Croix was one of only 8 rivers designated as a Wild and Scenic River signed into law 50 years ago in 1968. Ojibwa used the birch bark canoe on the St. Croix River for centuries. Millennia ago they traded and used local copper and the blue faceted bead is a nod to native trading on the river in the 1800’s. This limited edition birch bark canoe was hand made locally and is embellished with an authentic 19th c. bead of the kind traded in this area.

Thank you to Donald and Juli Hobson for handcrafting the canoes, Taylors Falls Bead Store for helping with the embellishments and the Lighting Festival Elves who helped put it all together.

2017 Lighting Festival Ornament

The early settlers of Taylors Falls depended on candles and oil lamps for light at night. There is a whale oil lamp, used by the Folsom’s, at the historic Folsom House. Tallow candles were used most often since beeswax was expensive. Tallow was smoky and smelly. Lamps too were smoky and the chimneys would be washed in the morning before the breakfast dishes. Because of the hydro dam, Taylors Falls was fortunate to have electricity starting in 1907. Still, at the time most people used candles or oil lamps to light their homes. This ornament is a nod to that bygone era.

Sale price – $3. Contact us to purchase.

2016 Lighting Festival Ornament

REAL MAPLE LEAF
Preserved in 24k GOLD

Did you know the W.H.C. Folsom family planted maple trees on Angel Hill in 1857? At least one still stands. Taylors Falls is also home to Don’s Sugar Shack that is known throughout the area for the delicious maple syrup tapped from sugar maples in St. Croix Falls and Taylors Falls. Processing is a group effort with sales benefiting the First Lutheran Youth Group. Of course the beautiful color of the maple leaves attracts visitors to the St. Croix river valley ever fall.

SOLD OUT

The 2015 Lighting Festival Ornament

This 2015 ornament featured a wonderful old photo of the horse drawn school buses on Angel Hill from 1915. The image continues on to the back of the ornament along with a description of the image, our theme “Journey of Learning,” and the fact that 2015 is the 100th Anniversary of the first senior class [of five students] to graduate from the Taylors Falls High School. If you are interested in ordering this ornament please contact us.

WE HAVE THIS ORNAMENT AVAILABLE – $3. CONTACT US IF YOU’RE INTERESTED IN PURCHASING.