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After a long absence, the miniature Hammons House is back this holiday season at the .

RELATED: On Christmas, all of Seattle sang 鈥楢merica鈥�

It was put away five years ago as the museum prepared to move from its longtime home in Montlake to its new location at .

The diminutive house was commissioned back in the 1940s by a local woman named Claire Hammons. It was designed by Seattle architect Joseph Cot茅 in the 鈥淐olonial Revival鈥� style and measures roughly four feet long by three feet high, and about three feet from front to back. Cot茅 also designed a regular-size house that the Hammons lived in on Queen Anne Hill for decades.

One of the coolest things about the Hammons House that鈥檚 now back on display at MOHAI is a volunteer named Robert Sondheim who has decorated it for Christmas every year beginning in 1974. As a very young man, Sondheim helped Mrs. Hammons with the decorations that first year back in 1974. After that 鈥� just one year of guidance 鈥� he was on his own.

鈥淪he said, 鈥業 just can’t do this anymore,鈥欌�� Sondheim said. Beginning in 1975, he began installing the decorations on his own. Mrs. Hammons was in her 90s when she passed away 鈥� not long after handing off the Hammons House holiday decoration torch to Robert Sondheim.

What exactly does Sondheim add to the Hammons House to decorate it for the holidays?

鈥淎 Christmas tree and packages. There鈥檚 a nativity scene over the fireplace in the living room, [and] that鈥檚 part of Mrs. Hammons鈥� original decorations,鈥� Sondheim said, giving a tour of the living area of the tiny home.

鈥淭here鈥檚 one package that I always keep out front here, and that was part of the original decorations that Mrs. Hammons had. It鈥檚 a diamond-shaped package,鈥� Sondheim said. 鈥淭here鈥檚 mistletoe in the front hall . . . [and a] little parcel leaning against a side table, addressed to the Museum of History & Industry鈥�

But the tiny festive decorations aren鈥檛 limited to the living room.

鈥淣ormally, there’s a card game going on [in the kitchen], but I take the card game off the table and put the wrapping in there,鈥� Sondheim said, pointing to tiny scissors and colorful wrapping paper.

With 40 years of experience, Robert Sondheim knows how to install miniature Christmas decorations. And he also knows the 70-odd years of history of the tiny house.

鈥淭he house was built in 1948. [Mrs. Hammons] had a love of miniatures. She and her husband, [Seattle Times executive] Frederick Dent Hammons didn鈥檛 have any children, so this was her contribution to children, and originally she displayed the house to raise money for the Children鈥檚 Orthopedic Hospital,鈥� Sondheim said.

Sondheim says Mrs. Hammons donated the house to MOHAI in 1955

It鈥檚 clear that miniature house has a 鈥渂ig鈥� history, and it turns out that Mrs. Hammons does, too.

鈥淢rs. Hammons is from a pioneer family. Her mother was Alice Mercer and her father was [Seattle historian and author] Clarence Bagley,鈥� Sondheim said. 鈥淎nd they had their house on Second and Aloha on Queen Anne Hill . . . [and] the house had a tower her father designed . . . so he could overlook the city and get inspiration for his historical books.鈥�

MOHAI staff are glad to have the Hammons House back, if only for the holiday season.

鈥淪ince we moved to the new location, this is one of the most requested artifacts that people want to see and they miss it,鈥� said MOHAI collections manager Betsy Bruemmer. 鈥淪o we’re really excited to bring it back.鈥�

Also back with the Hammons House are two full-size oil paintings of Daniel Bagley and Thomas Mercer, Claire Hammons鈥� pioneer grandfathers.

Bagley co-founded the University of Washington in 1861. In 1854, Thomas Mercer first suggested connecting freshwater Lake Washington to saltwater Puget Sound via Lake Union. Mercer is also credited with naming Lake Washington and Lake Union, though both bodies of water, of course, had been known by native names for millennia.

If you look carefully, you鈥檒l find miniature paintings of Bagley and Mercer 鈥� actual hand-painted miniature replicas of the full-size paintings 鈥� on display inside the Hammons House.

Those looking carefully will also be rewarded with a glimpse of one of the Hammons House鈥檚 most bizarre features: a teeny little mouse-skin rug that鈥檚 visible near the kitchen.

鈥淢rs. Hammons’ grandfather was Thomas Mercer, and he said every proper lady should know how to tan a hide,鈥� Robert Sondheim said. 鈥淪o they caught the mouse, and he taught her how to skin it and tan it, and so that’s the mouse rug.鈥�

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