When you visit the National Christmas Center in Paradise, Pennsylvania,
you’re sure Santa himself is welcoming you to his workshop. It’s really
Jim Morrison, who has been collecting Christmas memorabilia since he
acquired his first piece at the age of 6. His vast collection can be
seen in his 20,000-square-foot museum filled with treasures such as a
nativity scene utilizing rocks from the Holy Land, 2,000-year-old brass
and copper Herod coins, and papier-mache figures from Germany.
In one room, wide-eyed visitors watch as tiny trains make their way
around a snow-covered mountain, passing through villages and castles.
In another room, a more reverent scene depicts Nazareth as it
was 2,000 years ago. Additional exhibits represent the history of
Christmas in Pennsylvania, and a scene from Pennsylvania’s first F.W.
Woolworth store promoting Christmas ornaments for five and ten cents.
The collection is awesome. There’s no way to absorb it all, but
that’s fine with Morrison – he wants visitors from 3 to 93 to be amazed
and to leave with the true spirit of Christmas in their hearts. The
museum is open from June through December.
For more information, call (717) 442-7950, or go to nationalchristmascenter.com.
