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Tours
begin and end in downtown Washington and are ninety minutes long. If
there’s bad weather,please call 301-588-9255 day of tour for an update. For
more information, email mail@historicstrolls.com. For dates,
please see the tickets page.
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Ever ponder how Charles Dickens kept Christmas? Find out
on A Dickens of a Tour: Charles Dickens in Washington. Led by a
character from A Christmas Carol, this event features scenes from
the book and historical anecdotes about Dickens's visits to Washington in
the 19th century. As we wend our merry way past the actual buildings that
Dickens visited, we'll see scenes from Dickens's Yuletide work played out
in doorways and archways. A portion of the proceeds donated to SOME (So Others May Eat). how
to get to Dickens, ideas for parking and Metro stop locations
To see pictures from
our December 2003 tour, click
here.
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Did an actual
descendant of Charles Dickens appear somewhere on the 2005 tour?
Why yes, Virginia, he did!
Gerald Dickens, the great, great grandson of Charles Dickens in the flesh.
And we welcomed him with a great hurrah!
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Happy, happy Christmas, that can win us back to the delusions
of our childhood days, recall to the
old man the pleasures of his youth, and transport travelers back to his own
fireside and quiet home!
-- Charles Dickens
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Ready for All Hallow's Eve? Start with a thrilling
alternative to the usual "hack and slash" movies and bar hops.
The Ghost Story Tour of Washington will lead you through
Washington's most haunted locale, Lafayette Square Park, with an
entertaining interactive production featuring the specters rumoured to
haunt it. Walk with your ghostly guide, hear stories, meet spirits, and
take home a sweet treat!
A
portion of the proceeds from this tour will be donated to the Whitman-Walker
Clinic.
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If, after I
depart this vale, you ever remember me and have thought to please my
ghost,
forgive some sinner and wink your eye at some homely girl.
-- H.L. Mencken
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Spies, soldiers,
hot-air balloons, officers directing cattle and a real pistol-packing
heroine risking her life to save others. Sounds like the frontier? Courage!
The Civil War in Washington is a walking tour led by a “citizen” of
Washington City during the war years, 1860-1865. As the tour wends its way
past actual Civil War era structures you’ll hear amazing tales of life in
our city during this most divisive conflict in American History. You’ll
learn new things about some famous people such as Louisa May Alcott and
Mathew Brady and hear stories taken from Civil War diaries. You may even
meet a few interesting locals during this unusual tour. Take home a typical
Civil War recipe to try at home.
p>click here.
A portion of the
proceeds from this tour will be donated to area food banks
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All wars are civil
wars, because all men are brothers.
-- Francois
Fenelon
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Masons, Mysteries and an Odd
Fellow: Secrets of the Streets!
Why is there a statue of a Confederate General in Downtown Washington?
Did a future crowned head of Europe dance in a Masonic Hall? Find out the
answers to these questions as you learn about some of the City’s most
beautiful Masonic Structures. Meets outside Caribou Coffee 601 13th
St NW (Right next to Metro Center
$10 adults, $5 under 16 Premieres Saturday, November 14th
at 11:00 am
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Meets: Meet outside
Caribou Coffee, 601 13th Street NW (By Metro Center)
Only $10 adults, $5 under 16 years. Call
301-588-9255 for more info or email: mail@historicstrolls.com
Portion of proceeds benefits Area Food Banks
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Ah,
Wilderness! A Theatre History of Washington is a walk through Washington’s
original “Broadway”. Led by “actors” from the City’s past and featuring
current local talent, this tour shines a spotlight on the great theaters
that have taken their last curtain call. You’ll hear about Washington’s
theatrical beginnings in the early 1800’s and be astonished at the list of
greats that played our town. You’ll also be able to find out what’s playing
in Washington right now, and how to get same day, half price tickets for
many current shows.
A portion of the
proceeds from this tour will be donated to:
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I regard the
theatre as the greatest of all art forms, the most immediate in which
a human being can share with another the sense of what it is to be a human
being.
-- Oscar Wilde
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F. Loyd
Wrong is Right: A Stroll through Architecture in D.C.
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Frank
and Francine Loyd Wrong, America's worst architects, designed several
outstandingly terrible structures (that is, if they're still standing).
Most notable of these is their joint venture "Falling Down". It
did. When asked to comment on this Francine said "I blame Frank".
Frank of course, blames Francine. But they both agree on one thing.
Washington, D.C. is home to some amazingly beautiful architecture, and they
only wish they would be asked to design something for this city. Frank
suggests a triangular museum, balanced on a ball shaped base, balanced on a
two inch piece of marble. When asked how one would enter this museum Frank
said a slingshot elevator would be necessary to catapult visitors into the
site.
A portion of the
proceeds from this tour will be donated to Habitat for
Humanity.
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"I have reported myself and some nurses for free
service at the War Department..." Clara Barton, April 20th, 1861. What
was the city like when Clara Barton lived here? Join Miss Barton and
see the city through her eyes and learn something about this amazing woman.
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Bad
Olde Days
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Bad
Olde Days (formerly
Gangs of Washington) is a slice of 19th century Washington life
that most guidebooks gloss over but we found it fascinating. Take a walk
on the wilder side of the 1800’s on our rollicking look at Washington
City’s pickpockets, con men, “ladies” of ill repute, mobs, murderers and
of course, gangs! On this tour, led by a denizen of “Murder Bay”, you’ll
hear the most astonishing yet true tales and meet some of the “characters”
that made this town notorious. Along the way you’ll learn some 19th
century slang and maybe a card trick or two.
A
portion of the proceeds donated to the Washington Literacy Council
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Society can
overlook murder, adultery or swindling; it never forgives preaching of a
new gospel.
-- Edmund Burke
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World War 2 in Washington: Gussie’s War 
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It's December,
1941, and Washington, D.C. is in for a big change. Rationing, scrap
collecting, bond drives, and anti-aircraft guns on the roofs. Five thousand
new government workers arriving per month ... and where will they all live?
Socialites, soldiers, spies and "dollar a year" men are just
a few of the people you'll meet on this unusual tour. Join our new
"Government Gal" Gussie as she adjusts to life in a bustling
Wartime city. Learn how to survive on ration coupons, and how to "use
it up, wear it out". Bring a foil gum wrapper for the aluminum ball or
a piece of string for Gussie’s string ball! “Relive” these historic years
and see how they changed this city forever.
A portion of the
proceeds from this tour will be donated to:
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