A Logan County Christmas

The first three states to declare Christmas a legal holiday were Arkansas, Louisiana, and Alabama during the 1830s.

Few of the pioneers had Christmas trees or other decorations we now associate with Christmas, but it was a time of celebration. A special Christmas meal was prepared; wild game, a fat hen with dumplings, or a ham made up the main course. Sweets were made from dried fruits, molasses, and nuts.

Children received a homemade “play pretty.” Most often a rag doll or a carved wooden top, knitted mittens, caps, and stockings.

Part of the celebration in pioneer days was the Christmas “play party.” Music and dancing were the highlights of the evening. Malinda (Cotner) Burton told of buying new shoes each Christmas and dancing until she had worn holes in them at the Christmas Dance.

The “Christmas Gift” tradition has changed quite a bit since it began. According to custom, if you were greeted with these words on Christmas, you were supposed to give the greeter a gift, not the other way around!

Children were often given firecrackers, sparklers, and Roman Candles for Christmas. This was a custom mostly observed in the South and for most children in Arkansas, Christmas meant fireworks.

Another Southern Christmas Tradition was to take an anvil and fill it with gunpowder with another anvil placed on top. Then the powder was lit. This would create a double boom that could be heard for miles.

Fruits, nuts, and peppermint sticks were also a necessary part of Christmas. Oranges were a real treat at Christmas and Santa was expected to come through with a stocking filled with apples, walnuts, brazil nuts, oranges, and hard Christmas Candy. These treats were enjoyed for several days after Christmas.

All sorts of legends grew up around the Christmas Celebration and in pioneer days assumed great significance. Two dates were designated as Christmas. Christmas was celebrated on December 25th, but the “Old Christmas” fell on January 6. At midnight on Old Christmas, it was said that the cattle would kneel and talk. Bees in the hives hummed so loudly they could be heard great distances. It was also said that in some wells the water turned to wine at midnight.

The weather on Christmas Day was especially noteworthy. A mild Christmas indicated a good harvest. On the other hand, a mild Christmas also foretold an unhealthy condition for the coming months.

New Year’s Day was greatly significant in foretelling the conditions to be expected in the year to come. A dish of blackeyed peas was a must for the New Year’s Meal. Eating blackeyed peas on New Year’s Day insured good luck in the coming year. Through the South, this custom is still observed.

Many considered it “bad luck” to hang a new calendar before January 1.

Others believed that what a person did on New Year’s Day would determine what you did all year. Washing clothes on New Year’s Day meant a year of hard work. A good supply of salt with filled salt shakers in the house insured a year of plenty. Nothing could be taken out of the house on New Year’s Day and all who entered brought something in; a log for the fireplace, a handful of nuts, or a piece of dried fruit.

The weather during the first twelve days of January was a prediction of the weather for the twelve months of the year. If there was no wind on New Year’s Day, it meant that it would be a dry summer. If there was a breeze, there would be sufficient rainfall during the year for growing crops. If a windstorm occurred on New Year’s Day, floods would occur during the following autumn. 

Some old-timer's Christmas Recollection's - 

“At Christmas time grandmother would invite all her children and grandchildren for a home gathering and how fairy-like she made the home. The sweet-smelling spruce was brought into use, and everywhere were set these trees and branches, sparkling with crystals, converting the old-fashioned home into a veritable ice palace – a fit place for Santa Claus reception. The secret she told us was this: The spruce was first dipped into a light solution of glue, then rolled in crushed alum (not powdered). You who have never seen the effect, just try it once and see how like a million dewdrops in the sun it appears.”

“One of the favorite sports on Christmas Day would be “shooting the anvil.” We would build a large fire and put oak logs on this fire. The oak logs would burn down and make big pieces of charcoal, red coals of fire. We would use my father’s anvil on Christmas to make a loud gun-like noise. We would spit on the anvil, lay one of those red hot coals on it and take a poleaxe and hit the coals. It would pop just like a shotgun. That is called “shooting the anvil.” We would do that for maybe two or three hours until it got where it wasn’t funny. That was one of our favorite sports on Christmas Day.”

“An early Christmas custom was the community Christmas tree. It was usually at the schoolhouse and the whole community participated. The school children were busy for many days making decorations for the tree. There was usually one gift for each child and a bag of candy and fruit. This was all the Christmas Gifts most children received during the depression years.”

~ taken from the Wagon Wheels

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!