'A Small Town Christmas Village' Exhibit Returns in Ogden

Take a short trip east of Champaign-Urbana to visit an amazing Christmas Village at the Ogden Rose Public Library

Roberta Morris is once again exhibiting her miniature Christmas Village, with optional donations to benefit programs at the library

The expression “Go big or go home!” comes to mind quite often during the holiday season, when visions of excess dance in our heads — and on our lawns, and under our trees.

At the Ogden Rose Public Library this December, an amazingly detailed and precisely arranged miniature Christmas village is SO big, it fills up an entire meeting room and spills out onto the library shelves and windowsills to create a wonderland for visitors of all ages.

Miniature sleigh and castle from Christmas Village — All photos by chambanamoms

Roberta “Bert” Morris’ Christmas village layouts are legendary in Central Illinois. Over the years she has exhibited her impressive collection as a labor of love in various cities, including Champaign in 2019. The public is invited to donate but admission is free for all.

After a two-year pandemic hiatus, Bert moved her “Small Town Christmas” village exhibit to the small town of Ogden (population 729) in 2022. Now her newly assembled and fully lit village will open for the 2024 holiday season on Dec. 7.

Visitors to the Ogden Rose Public Library can enjoy the overflow shelves of the village whenever the library is open, but you’ll want to plan your visit for times when the meeting room is scheduled to be open. If you’re lucky, you’ll get to meet Bert herself, all the way from Decatur.

Visitors will find themselves ooh-ing and ah-ing over vignette after vignette — “Look! A parade!” “Here’s a dog park!” “The flamingos at the motel are wearing wreaths!” “Over here, a fireman rescuing a cat from a tree!” The village includes over 500 houses, garages, churches, shops, and larger pieces. It also includes thousands of trees, thousands of animals and people, and thousands of small details such as mailboxes, light posts, fire hydrants, and even trash cans.

Radio station and motel in a miniature Christmas village — The flamingos really do have wreaths!

The main village layout in the meeting room is at kid-level, which makes it possible for short visitors to marvel at tiny details such as working lights, signs, and moving parts. Parents will need to supervise their smaller children and help them keep their hands to themselves.

In a stroke of brilliance — clearly this is not Bert’s first rodeo — the library has dedicated tables in the main area for a build-your-own village area, where touching is not only permitted but encouraged.

Figures toasting marshmallows in a miniature Christmas village — Toasting marshmallows under a few of the exhibit’s 2,000+ trees.

All the proceeds from the 2024 Christmas village exhibit will benefit programming at the Ogden Rose Public Library. The Village of Ogden has operated a public library since 1919, started with funds bequeathed from the Rose family. The tornado of April 19, 1996, that tore through downtown Ogden also destroyed the original library building. Thanks to great community effort, most of the library materials were saved; in only two years, the library reopened in its current building.

If you go

This library is a very welcoming place for children. In addition to the play tables for the Christmas village exhibit, it has a coloring and crafts table set up, as well as a Christmas photo backdrop.

Location and hours

The Ogden Rose Public Library is located at 103 W. Main Street in the Village of Ogden, an easy 20-minute drive east of Champaign on I-74.

“A Small Town Christmas” opens to the public on Dec. 7. It will be open for viewing through Dec. 22 on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays, and Sundays from noon until 7 p.m., and for one final weekend after Christmas — Dec. 28 and 29, from noon until 7 p.m. Contact the library before you head out to confirm any changes to the schedule.

Find the Ogden Rose Public Library on Facebook, Instagram, or by calling (217) 582-2411.

Looking for more? Subscribe to our Holiday Newsletter. Want more ideas for holiday (or everyday) fun? Check out our Events Calendar.

‘A Small Town Christmas Village’ Exhibit Returns in Ogden

Take a short trip east of Champaign-Urbana to visit an amazing Christmas Village at the Ogden Rose Public Library

Roberta Morris is once again exhibiting her miniature Christmas Village, with optional donations to benefit programs at the library

If you go

Location and hours

Everything Holiday Season In and Around Champaign-Urbana