You may think that your family has long standing family holiday traditions, but the Raths (pronounced Rotts) of Woodbury surely have you beat. There have been Raths living in Woodbury and celebrating Christmas since 1864.

For over a quarter of a century, the Raths family, one of the oldest families in Woodbury, has shared their holiday by decorating the Woodbury Heritage House. The Heritage House, built in 1870, was originally on the Raths farm before it was moved to Marsh Creek Park.

Nowadays the Heritage House, the only museum in Woodbury, is a symbol of community history for the residents of Woodbury. Here artifacts tumble against walls and floors bearing witness to the accidents, incidents, tragedies, and hard work that forged pioneer communities from the 1840s.

The annual tradition of decorating the Heritage House – is spearheaded by Sheila (Raths) Hause, board director of the Woodbury Heritage Society. She is the great-great granddaughter of Frederick and Sophia Raths, who immigrated from Germany in 1853 and came to Woodbury in 1864.

The Raths purchased their 160-acre farm in 1866 for $1,280, adjacent to what is now the intersection of Lake Road and Radio Drive. In 1870 they built an attachment to their log cabin home, which was preserved as the Woodbury Heritage House.

The decorating of Heritage House began as a way for the Raths family to come together and give Woodbury residents a visual treat for the holiday season.

“It never gets old to see the beautiful work of our family at the Woodbury Heritage House. Seven generations of the Raths family have been present to decorate the Heritage House each year, and traditionally we begin the Saturday after Thanksgiving, for the past 26 years,” Hause said. “This year, the family will gather on Saturday, Nov. 30 with the bows, garland, and wreaths in tow.”

Regardless of weather, their resilience and their rich deep history fuels their holiday decoration tradition to the delight of the Woodbury community.