2022 St. Lucia Festival

 The Seminole County Historical Society is proud to announce that it will again host the largest St. Lucia festival in Central Florida on Saturday, December 10, 2022 from 12pm to 5pm.  General Admission tickets are free and opinion to the public. Enjoy several choral and dance performances, authentic Swedish food, beverages, and desserts, and witness the traditional St. Lucia Processional. The festival is held each year on the grounds of the beautiful Museum of Seminole County History (300 Eslinger Way, Sanford FL 32773) in Sanford, Florida.

The Festival of St. Lucia is traditionally celebrated on December 13th and begins the Christmas season in Swedish culture. According to Swedish legend, a ship carrying a maiden "clothed in white and crowned with light" appeared on the shore in Värmland during a great famine. The maiden, widely believed to be Lucia, distributed food and clothing to the needy, thus endearing herself to the Swedish people. As a school founded by Swedish immigrants, the Gustavus Adolphus College community has found it appropriate to celebrate some Swedish traditions. 

The Swedish heritage of Seminole County dates to the late nineteenth century. Henry Sanford arranged for 150 adults, mostly men and boys, to immigrate from Sweden to Florida in 1871 to work as laborers at his citrus groves and on lands where they farmed crops like pineapples, olives, figs, and grapes. These immigrants mostly came from Uppsala in Sweden. They helped establish one of five Swedish settlements in Central Florida and called it New Upsala. These Swedish families make up one of the largest ethnic groups that helped to settle Sanford and the surrounding areas.

Seminole County has been home to the St. Lucia Festival for almost four decades. 2022 marks the festival’s 38th year. Volunteer Teri Patterson, a descendant of one of the areas Swedish families, worked hard to revitalize and grow the festival after it almost died out in the late 1990s.

General Admission to the festival and parking is free. At this family friendly event, guests will be able to see several choral and dance performances from area schools, like the Lake Mary Elementary Choir, the All Souls Catholic School Choir, and Integrity Dance Center. A children’s craft area will be available for kids to enjoy. The museum will be open for the guests to tour. A special temporary exhibit on the history of St. Lucia and Swedish Christmas traditions can also be viewed. Food trucks will also be present. For more information, please visit https://sanfordstlucia.com.