The tour starts with a little Christmas caroling:
The first stop is Foster-Tuft's house in 1830. At that time celebrating Christmas was considered pagan. And in the Foster's house, like many others, an argument erupts between the children who want to celebrate Jesus' birth, and the father who is firm in his belief that Christmas is wrong:
Next is the local mercantile in the 1840's. Christmas has become good for business....Christmas sales, Christmas sales, Christmas sales. And this small town shop keeper is trying to find better ways to advertise. One man suggests dressing up like Santa Claus, but at that time, that was considered beneath a gentleman's dignity:
From there the tour ends up in a local tavern/inn in the 1850's, and what commences is a major clash of opinions. By then, Christmas was on it's way to becoming a national holiday, and more and more traditions were being started. The Irish innkeeper feels that Christmas should be celebrated the old way, with parades and pubs and music in the city streets. But one of the guests wants to celebrate it the new way, with family, and a tree and presents, and reindeer that fly:
Next is the church during 1855. The reverend is giving a very convincing sermon on why the the church should take advantage of the Christmas celebrations and use them to educate the population as to the true meaning of Christmas:
After the church, the tour the moves to the Livingston-Backus house, in 1860. It is a festive scene, with the two daughters doing a pantomime of the story The Night Before Christmas. But at the end, a friend comes to share the bad news that South Carolina has seceded, and men will very likely be going off to war by springtime.
Next is the Town Hall. It's 1862, and many of the men are off at war. To keep their spirits up, the local families hold a party. But right in the middle of the evening, the local casualty list from the battle of Fredricksburg is brought in. Women weep as their husband's, fiance's, and brother's names are read as wounded or dead. One young lady is devastated, because she hasn't heard from her young man in weeks. At the very end, however, that young man shows up, and the two get to waltz.
From there the tour travels to another local inn, during the late 1860s. Traveling actors have become very popular, and a few are staying at the inn. Although many of the actors are claiming illness, two actresses are persuaded to give the tour a short skit. They perform the scene from A Christmas Carol where Belle releases Scrooge from their engagement because he loves money now more than he loves her. The two actresses use singing as well as acting, and do a very convincing job.
The last stop is the MacKay house in the 1870's. The lovely Scottish family invites to tour to join in on their Christmas celebrations. First is the lighting of the candles on the Christmas tree, while one of the ladies sings Oh Christmas Tree. Next, they show off their scrumptious dinner, including goose and a pig's head, but no hagus. Finally, they all do a jig while their son plays the bagpipes.
And that concludes the tour. Forty years of Christmas, and just a small glimpse of how it was celebrated. I was part of the Town Hall scene (no surprise, since they have the dancing!), and it was very enjoyable!
Here are some pictures of various things.
The whole group at Town Hall:
Some of the buildings at night. The village is so beautiful, covered in snow and lit by candles!
The snowman Theodore, who managed to survive that random warm Sunday!
Watching the scene at Livingston:
Oh such fun times.....times of laughter, and some times of sadness. Wonderful walks through the snow, lots of great dances, and a ton of waltzing. It was three weekends I will never forget!
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