Historic Downtown Montgomery holds its whole Christmas lineup on a single day. On Saturday, December 12, 2026, the City of Montgomery and the Montgomery Historical Society put a parade, a craft market, a cookie sale and a candlelit home tour into one ten-hour day. Halloween has the same squeeze. The town's two strongest events land on the same evening, a few miles apart. Several cutoffs for both seasons close within the next three weeks. For a Bentwater household, Montgomery's holidays get planned in October, and December mostly takes care of itself.
The deadlines are in October
Here is the calendar from today, October 12, sorted by when each choice closes:
- October 16–17: Montgomery Quilt Walk. It runs 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. both days in downtown Historic Montgomery, presented by the City. The City's notice invites quilters to submit their own work and asks volunteers to sign up. Anyone with a finished quilt still has a few days to get it into the show.
- October 26: last day for Halloween party tickets at GODSPARK and Holiday House. The party needs advance tickets, and sales stop five days before the event.
- October 31: last day to enter the Lone Star Christmas Parade. Entries close on that date or when the City approves 100 entries, whichever comes first. The fee went from $25 to $50 on October 1.
- October 31: the City's Trick or Treat. It runs 2 to 6 p.m. in the Downtown Business District.
Items three and four fall on the same day. A family or club that wants a float in the December parade can finish the entry form on the afternoon it walks downtown for candy.
Halloween splits by the clock
The City of Montgomery's Trick or Treat ends at 6 p.m. An hour before that, the Golden Age of Hollywood Halloween Party starts at GODSPARK and Holiday House, 13537 Laramie Trail. It runs 5 to 8 p.m. and is for adults.
The two share one hour. Downtown handles the afternoon for families. The evening moves out to Laramie Trail. Here is what's on the GODSPARK ticket:
- Dinner is Hollywood-inspired Italian food from Chef Andy of Angie's Choice Catering, including an Over the Rainbow Salad and pastas named for Sinatra and Fairbanks.
- Drinks come from Fizz and Forest, with specialties called Sunset Boulevard, The Leading Lady and The Pumpkin Picture Show.
- Jazz Dish plays live jazz from the gazebo.
- Tickets are $102.50. Guests must be 21 or older, and you can bring your own Champagne, wine or beer.
- The dress code is old Hollywood stars and characters or flapper-style outfits.
GODSPARK is new to Montgomery this year. Community Impact reported that Johanna and William Bustamento opened it in July after moving from East Texas. The 8.5-acre venue has indoor and outdoor space, works with three chefs and local vendors, and plans events around every major holiday. Johanna Bustamento told Community Impact that the couple wanted guests to feel "like you're going home for the holidays." Its first fall event, Harvest of Happiness, was a bluegrass dinner on October 10. That makes the Halloween party the second entry on a seasonal calendar that is only a few months old. Holiday House events for later in the season haven't been announced yet, so it's worth checking the venue's site in November.
December 12, hour by hour
The Historical Society calls the day "Lone Star Christmas." The schedule is tight enough to read better as a timetable:
| Time | Event | Where | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. | Holiday Marketplace Arts & Crafts Sale | Grounds around the Old Community Center, 14420 Liberty St. | Vendor prices vary |
| 10 a.m. – noon | Lone Star Christmas Parade | Downtown route, City of Montgomery | Not listed |
| 11 a.m. – 4 p.m., or until sold out | 36th Annual Cookie Walk | Inside the Old Community Center, Liberty and College St. | $10 per pound |
| 4 p.m. – 7 p.m. | 49th Annual Candlelight Home Tour | Walking route of historic churches, homes and landmarks | $15 adults, $5 students, free for ages four and under |
The City has posted the parade route as a map instead of a street list, so it's worth opening before you pick a spot. The City runs the parade and the Historical Society runs everything else, and each event takes its own registration.
The day has two pinch points
Two items on the timetable can run out, and they sit at opposite ends of the day.
The Cookie Walk can sell out early. The Historical Society's press release lists it until 4 p.m., "or until all cookies and candies are sold." Guests fill boxes with decorated holiday cookies and candies sold by the pound. The Montgomery Monarchs Chapter of the National Charity League spends days decorating and staging the room beforehand. The doors open at 11 a.m., while the parade is still on, and the Old Community Center is right at Liberty and College. For an hour, a household can be at the parade or at the cookie tables, but not at both.
At the other end of the day, the late afternoon is tight. The Marketplace closes at 5 p.m. and the Candlelight Home Tour starts at 4 p.m., so the two overlap for one hour. The tour is a walk led by luminarias, with each stop decorated for the holidays. This is the 49th year it has run. Its high point this year is a single line in the release: "all of the homes at Fernland Historical Park will be open for the tour." Tickets and details are at mhs-tx.org.
Fernland is the reason the night tour matters
On a regular week, Fernland Historical Park at 770 Clepper Drive is open Tuesday through Saturday from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. and Sunday from noon to 4 p.m., with a docent on duty. It is closed Mondays and admission is free. With those hours, the park closes by mid-afternoon most days. The Candlelight Tour is when they open after dark.
The park is a collection of buildings that preservation architect Carroll Tharp and his wife, Mae, found, restored and moved to Montgomery. The buildings include:
- The Arnold Simonton House, now a museum. It stayed in the Simonton family until 1976, when the family donated it to the Montgomery Historical Society. For a short time it served as Montgomery City Hall on Rankin Street before moving to the park. It became a Recorded Texas Historic Landmark in 1964 and was added to the National Register of Historic Places on December 11, 1979.
- The Hulon House, a Civil War-era Greek Revival plantation house originally built in Danville, Texas.
- Crane Cabin, built in 1867 in Angelina County.
- The Metalsmith's Shop.
- A volunteer-built tower holding the original bell from China Chapel, one of several freedmen's churches founded in Montgomery County.
The park is run through a partnership of Fernland, Inc., a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, the City of Montgomery and Sam Houston State University. Seeing it on a quiet Tuesday in November, and then again by luminaria on December 12, are two quite different visits.
The town behind the "Lone Star" name
The parade is the Lone Star Christmas Parade and the Historical Society's day is "Lone Star Christmas." The Texas State Historical Association's Handbook of Texas notes that Montgomery calls itself the "Birthplace of the Texas Flag." It credits the 1839 Lone Star Flag design to Charles B. Stewart, an early Montgomery resident. The Historical Society behind the December events traces its own start to 1954. That year, Anna Weisinger opened her restored home, The Magnolia, to the community.
Before and after
Small downtown businesses tend to have hours that change over the holidays, so call ahead. Perfect Blend Coffee Shop and Boutique, at 202 McCown Street in the Historical District, pairs pastries baked in-house with a gift boutique. Community Impact covered the 2024 opening of Jewel's Teahouse Cafe & Antiques at 14351 Liberty St., which serves tea, baked goods, soups, salads and sandwiches. Check its current hours before planning around it.
The drive from the west side of the lake should be easier by December. Community Impact reported that the FM 1097 widening from Blueberry Hills Road to Lake Conroe Hills Drive was 96% complete as of TxDOT's September 4 update. The project takes that stretch from two lanes to four.
Each fall, a Bentwater home becomes a place where family gathers. At Janet Chavez Realty Group, we pay attention to how the lake's homes carry the holidays, from the entry lit for guests to the table set for a long dinner. If you're thinking about what your home is worth this season, request your confidential home valuation and we'll go through it with you before December 12.
