The halls of one of Cass County’s most historic homes will be decked with boughs of holly (along with other Christmas regalia), as the Underground Railroad Society of Cass County invites the public to its fourth annual Christmas at the Bonine House event this weekend.

Families will have a chance to tour the Victorian home, located at Penn Road and M-60 in Vandalia, from 2 p.m. to 8 p.m. on Friday and Saturday and noon to 6 p.m. Both floors of the more than 170-year-old mansion will be decorated for the holiday season, which people can tour at their leisure during the free open house weekend.

Live entertainment will be featured at the house throughout the weekend. Santa Claus and Mrs. Claus will also be visiting the home during the event.

The event began in 2012 after a local garden club asked members of the Underground Railroad Society, which owns and maintains the property, if they were decorating the house for Christmas, said Cathy LaPointe, one of the founding members of the URSCC.

“So many people wanted to participate that it just snowballed from there,” LaPointe said. “We went from just decorating the living room to doing the whole house.”

Around 15 people helped participate in the decorating project this year, LaPointe said. Participating members of the historical society were each given a room within the property to decorate, with each member putting his or her own spin on the décor.

“It’s why people come back every year, to see how each room is decorated differently this year,” LaPointe said. “A lot of people also want to see the progress of the restoration.”

The URSCC has been working since 2011 to restore the Bonine residence and the property’s carriage house, the latter of which is believed to have to been used to hide fugitive slaves during the Underground Railroad movement. The home was one of many “stations” in Vandalia, which is said to have helped more than 1,500 escaped slaves from 1840 to 1860.

Over the last several years, Christmas at the Bonine House has drawn nearly 1,000 visitors, hailing from as far as Chicago, LaPointe said.

“It’s become a family tradition for many,” LaPointe said.