Excerpt from- Return of the Three Kings: RECLAIMING THE 12 DAYS R!M CHRISTMAS T!

E"I"HANY# By Jo Lee Loveland Link and John W. Link Copyright 2013 John and Jo Lee Loveland Link A$%i&%'&e fro( A(%)on "ri(e in "%*er +%,- %n. Kin.&e From the country ! earlie!t day!" there ha! #een a deep cultural argument concerning the proper cele#ration of Chri!tma!$ %he !tyle! of Chri!tma! in &e' England !eemed to fall along 'hich !ide of the Congregationali!t ()uritan*antecedent+ or the ,nitarian (more progre!!ive religiou! orientation+ church divide$ %he )uritan de!cendent! tended to have very !om#er Chri!tma!e!" 'ith little fe!tivity" fanfare or decoration!$ -o'ever" the ,nitarian*influenced home! 'ere already cele#rating" 'ith .uite a lot of frivolity" and the more raucou! cu!tom! of England$ For the &e' England )uritan!" Chri!tma! 'a! an extremely !acred occa!ion" to #e cele#rated .uietly" prayerfully" and 'ithout pomp" frivolity" /oyful mu!ic" or decoration!$ La'! and puni!hment! 'ere u!ed to di!courage any !uch expre!!ion!$ 0illiam 1radford" the )ilgrim ! !econd governor" 'rote he tried hard to !tamp out 2)agan mockery3 of Chri!tma!" penali4ing any frivolity$ %hi! aligned 'ith England ! 5liver Crom'ell" 'ho preached again!t 2the heathen tradition!3 of Chri!tma! carol!" decorated tree!" or any /oyful expre!!ion de!ecrating 2that !acred event$3 %he 6eneral Court of 7a!!achu!ett! enacted a la' in 189: making a penal offen!e of any o#!ervance of Chri!tma! ; other than a church !ervice$ )eople 'ere fined for hanging decoration!$ For example" in Concord" a future <enator" 6eorge -oar" !aid= "Little account was made of Christmas. The fashion of Christmas presents was almost wholly unknown." >n ?merica" tradition! involving the Chri!tma! tree and other fe!tive Chri!tma! cu!tom! 'ere 'idely varying$ 7any 1:th*Century ?merican Chri!tian! found Chri!tma! tree! a !trange !ym#ol$ ?! la!t a! the 1@A0!" Chri!tma! tree! 'ere !een a! )agan #y many ?merican! and not em#raced a! part of Chri!tma! cele#ration!$ -o'ever" 6erman !ettler! in )enn!ylvania are recorded a! having Chri!tma! tree! !tarting in the 1@30!" 'ith community tree! a! early a! 1BAB (though in 6ermany Chri!tma! tree! 'ere u!ed much earlier+$ 1y the 1@30 !" fe!tive cele#ration! 'ere making inroad! into the ?merican experience" de!pite the deep and ongoing cultural argument concerning the proper cele#ration of Chri!tma!$ 1ut according to a letter in 1@3: from -enry Cavid %horeau ! #rother" John" 'ritten to a young friend" recalling a ,nitarian*influenced Chri!tma! from their childhood a do4en year! earlier= When I was a little oy I was told to han! my clean stockin! with those of my rother and sister in the chimney corner the ni!ht efore Christmas" and that #$anta Claus"# a very !ood sort of sprite" who rode a out in the air upon a roomstick %an odd kind of horse I think& would come down the chimney in the ni!ht" and fill our stockin!s if we had een !ood children" with dou!h'nuts" su!ar plums and all sorts of nice thin!s( ut if we had een nau!hty we found in the

stockin! only a rotten potato" a letter and a rod. I !ot the rotten potato once" had the letter read to me" and was very !lad that the rod put into the stockin! was too short to e used.) "*.I determined one ni!ht to sit up until mornin! that I mi!ht !et a si!ht at +$anta Claus, when he came down the chimney. *I !ot a little cricket and sat down y the fireplace lookin! sharp up into the chimney" and there I sat for a out an hour later than my usual ed time" I suppose" when I fell asleep and was carried off to ed efore I knew anythin! a out it. $o I have never seen him" and don#t know what kind of a lookin! fellow he was."
%$ource- John Thoreau" Jr." Letter to .eor!e $ewall" /ec. 01" 1203. 4uoted in Walter 5ardin!" The /ays of 5enry Thoreau +6rinceton" 1337,. 8dapted from 5enry /avid Thoreau" presented y The Thoreau 6ro9ect" a nonprofit initiative of Calliope" Inc.&

?nd then in 1@A8" Dueen Eictoria and )rince ?l#ert appeared in the >llu!trated London &e'! gathered around the royal ca!tle ! Chri!tma! tree$ )opular 'ith her o'n !u#/ect!" Eictoria 'a! al!o regarded a! a fa!hion icon #y Ea!t Coa!t ?merican <ociety" and acceptance of the Chri!tma! tree 'a! !ecured$ 1y the time of the Civil 0ar" ?merican Chri!tma! tradition! had coale!ced and Chri!tma! 'a! a #right light in an other'i!e dark time" for #oth <outh and &orth$ 0ith !ome irony" many of our ?merican Chri!tma! tradition! ; including 'ide!pread u!e of the Chri!tma! tree ** came to maturity during the Civil 0ar" a time 'hen violence" familie! torn #y divided loyaltie!" and huge lo!!e! of life and lim# !eemed lia#le to over!hado' the Chri!tma! me!!age$ >n the face of thi! hard time" Chri!tma! and it! 'armth a! a holiday #ecame a comfort" and 'idely cele#rated$ 6iven the privation! of 'artime" decoration! 'ere mo!tly homemade carved toy!" chain! of colored paper" cake!" and fruit!$ Fet" even in the military camp!" the Chri!tma! tree #egan to #e found$

$anta Claus hands out !ifts durin! the :$ Civil War in Thomas ;ast#s first $anta Claus cartoon" 5arper#s Weekly" 12<0. $anta is wearin! a lue coat with white stars over read = white striped ritches.