John Blankenbaker's Germanna History Notes

Note 248

With December 25 approaching rapidly, it is a good question as to how our German ancestors spent Christmas day.  Some of the ideas here are definite, some are probable, and some are very speculative.  Perhaps you can help clarify the ideas.

In the Robinson River Valley, it is definite that the Germans went to church on Christmas day.  And, of the three or four times a year they held communion services, Christmas was one of them. From the list of communicants at Hebron on December 25, 1775, we have representatives of these families:  Carpenter, Weaver, Crisler, Crigler, Kaifer, Willheit, Gaar, Wayland, Broyles, Yowell, Rouse, Smith, Reiner, Blankenbaker, Finks, Moyer, Hart, Clore, Urbach, Neuenmacher, Snider, Fleshman, Beeman, Bender, Lehmann, Yager, Deer, Redman, Cook, Swindle, Berry, Delph, Barlow, Fisher, and Christopher (using maiden names in some cases).  I may have missed a few but the representation is quite broad.

One of the more probable things is that there were special dinners.  Extrapolating backwards in time from the present, a roasted goose was the center place of the dinner.  Probably there were special treats from the "bake oven."

Christmas was probably a social time.  The church served that function in part, but the day was probably an occasion for having very close relatives to dinner.

Gift giving was limited, more probably it was the occasion for special food treats which might be considered as gifts.

There could have been special decorations in the house, especially evergreen boughs and perhaps wild plants with berries.  I do not believe there would have been a tree as we think of a Christmas tree.

From what I have heard and read, Christmas was a social time.  Occurring near the shortest day of the year, it was not a good time for work.  It was a better time to join around the fire and to renew friendships.

If there are better opinions than this, let's hear them.