Laurens' Holiday Season Runs Through Two Buildings on the Public Square
November 12, 2026
November 12, 2026
The first trees went up at the Laurens County Museum on Nov. 7. The last holiday-season exhibit there closes on Jan. 16, 2027. The City's tree lighting and Christmas parade fall on one Friday and Saturday near the middle of that stretch.
Most of the season happens indoors, at 116 South Public Square and at 104 E Main Street. The museum covers the daytime and the Capitol Theatre covers the evenings, so there are more good dates on the Laurens calendar this year than one parade weekend.
The Laurens County Museum's Festival of Trees is in its second year. It runs from Nov. 7 through Jan. 2. More than 35 trees fill the building, decorated by local businesses, families, organizations and nonprofits, and visitors vote for their favorites.
Regular museum hours are Tuesday through Saturday, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. It is closed Sunday and Monday. In its July 2026 newsletter, the museum said admission is free and everyone is welcome. Those hours mean most visits to the trees happen on a weekday or a Saturday morning.
The exception is a Monday night. The museum has set a Festival of Trees Candlelight Viewing for Dec. 21, from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m., with a self-guided tour and refreshments. Dec. 21, 2026, is a Monday, a day the museum is normally closed, so that evening is the one chance to see the trees after dark.
The museum's next two holiday events land on back-to-back days, both at 116 South Public Square.
The Merry Market runs Friday, Nov. 27, from 4 to 8 p.m., and Saturday, Nov. 28, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. The museum's October newsletter says more than 20 local vendors will take part, and shoppers can walk the exhibits while they are there.
On that Saturday, "Americans" opens. It is a traveling exhibition from the Smithsonian Institution, and it stays through Jan. 16, 2027. It looks at how American Indian images, names and stories run through United States history and popular culture, across four topics: Pocahontas, the Battle of Little Bighorn, the Trail of Tears and Thanksgiving. Opening on Thanksgiving weekend suits that last topic.
SC Humanities describes the South Carolina tour as a Museum on Main Street collaboration. The Smithsonian's National Museum of the American Indian developed the exhibit, and Museum on Main Street adapted it for travel. Laurens is one of six host sites in the state. The others are:
Upstate visitors can see this exhibit in Laurens without driving to the coast or the Pee Dee. The Saturday market hours and the exhibit's opening day overlap, so one morning on the Square covers both.
The City runs its two outdoor events on the first Friday and Saturday of December.
The Christmas Tree Lighting is Friday, Dec. 4, from 5:30 to 9 p.m. at The Plaza, 200 West Public Square. It includes a Holiday Vendor Market, Santa's Village and family activities.
The Christmas Parade follows on Saturday, Dec. 5, from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. on Main Street. On its special events page, the City gives this year's theme as "Come Home to Laurens: Christmas at the Movies."
A movie theme fits a parade that rolls along Main Street past the Capitol Theatre, and the theatre's own Christmas series begins five days later.
The Capitol Theatre is at 104 E Main Street on the Square. It turned 100 in 2026. The City's centennial program, set for June 26, included a talk on the theatre's history and restoration and a silent screening of The Freshman with live piano by Ethan Uslan.
City ownership of the theatre is fairly new. Presbyterian College bought the Capitol in October 2021 and planned it as an esports venue, restaurant, movie theater and performing arts center. In September 2023, Presbyterian College announced that it was moving esports back to campus and deeding the building to the City of Laurens. The college said it would keep working with the City on programming that brings students to the Public Square.
Under City ownership, the Capitol now runs on a standing schedule. Free movie nights are held on the second and fourth Friday of each month, with doors at 6 p.m. and showtime at 6:30 p.m. Seating is first-come, first-served, and concessions are for sale, according to the City's Capitol Theatre page. Nov. 27 is a fourth Friday. That same evening, the Merry Market runs until 8 p.m. a short walk away.
December brings the bigger series. Who's On The Move reported that Christmas at the Capitol runs from Dec. 10 through Dec. 22, with Christmas movies, live music and special performances for visitors of all ages. The City of Laurens is the contact for theatre information.
The Candlelight Viewing on Dec. 21 falls inside that same window, so the museum opens for one evening while the Capitol's Christmas series is running.
| Date | Event | Location |
|---|---|---|
| Nov. 7 to Jan. 2 | Festival of Trees, Tue to Sat, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. | Laurens County Museum, 116 South Public Square |
| Nov. 27, 4 to 8 p.m. | Merry Market, Friday shopping | Laurens County Museum |
| Nov. 28, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. | Merry Market, Saturday shopping | Laurens County Museum |
| Nov. 28 to Jan. 16, 2027 | "Americans," a Smithsonian traveling exhibit | Laurens County Museum |
| Dec. 4, 5:30 to 9 p.m. | Christmas Tree Lighting, vendor market, Santa's Village | The Plaza, 200 West Public Square |
| Dec. 5, 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. | Christmas Parade, "Christmas at the Movies" | Main Street |
| Dec. 10 to Dec. 22 | Christmas at the Capitol | Capitol Theatre, 104 E Main Street |
| Dec. 21, 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. | Festival of Trees Candlelight Viewing | Laurens County Museum |
The Square has a new coffee stop for the daytime half of the season. Press & Pointer Coffee House opened on Saturday, Aug. 22, at 103 East Laurens Street. Its hours are Tuesday through Saturday, 6:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., nearly the same days and hours as the museum.
Owner Evie Collins came to Laurens County for college and stayed to open the shop. Who's On The Move described a room that is darker than you might expect, on purpose. It has moody lighting, modern pieces next to vintage and thrifted finds, seats for one person with a book or laptop, and tables where a small group can work together.
"I wanted the space to have a spot for every person that comes in," Collins told Who's On The Move.
A Saturday visit could start with coffee there, move to the museum's trees and the Smithsonian exhibit when the doors open at 10, and finish before both places close in mid-afternoon. On Dec. 5, that still leaves time to find a spot on Main Street before the 4:30 p.m. parade.
Two outdoor spaces are opening as the holiday calendar fills up.
Little River Park at 317 East Main Street has its grand-reopening ribbon cutting today, Thursday, Nov. 19, from 4 to 5 p.m., according to the Laurens County Chamber calendar. The Laurens County Advertiser described the renovation as a new ADA-accessible playground and swing set, updates to the restrooms and office, and ongoing landscaping.
Out at the Joe Adair Center, 110 Scout Creek Road, a new Kids in Parks TRACK Trail had a noon ribbon cutting scheduled for Saturday, Nov. 14, during the center's Fall Festival. Who's On The Move reported that the trail's self-guided activities are designed for children and families.
On the Square, the museum's Festival of Trees stays up through Jan. 2, and "Americans" remains on view through Saturday, Jan. 16, 2027.
At Joan Timmerman's Premier Properties, we keep calendars like this one close because the Square is part of what neighbors and newcomers come to love about Laurens. If you'd like to talk about the town beyond its holiday season, Schedule a Local Market Consultation and we'll start with the places you already know.
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