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r wwwwwwwwuwewiwi Section Two The Canadian Statesman, Bowmanville, December 19,1990 Z \ Yesteryear Christmas Comes to Life at Clarke Museum by Andrea Adair The ghost of Christmas past has come to the municipality municipality a little early. The character from the Dickens classic really isn't here but, a trip to the Clarke Museum and Archives will show you some of the traditions people took part in during during Ebenezer Scrooge's time. Since this is the first year the museum has remained remained open during the Christmas season, it is also the first time they have created a Christmas display. Mark Jackman, curator, curator, noted the display covers covers the history of the Christmas card from the very first to modern-day cards. In addition, pioneer gifts and decorations are also shown. Mr. Jackman stated that some of the cards in the display are not what most people commonly think of when they think of Christmas cards. Many are postcards and most don't even have Christmas scenes on them. The museum does have one of Louis Prang's first cards though. Mr. Prang, who was a printer working in what is now Boston, brought the card to North America America in 1881. For roughly 40 years, Mr. Jackman said, "Prang was instrumental in making cards popular in North America. But he was put out by mass marketing." marketing." Prang was the first to employ 12 colour printing in nis cards, novelty pop up cards and Christmas card design competitions. But . in the 1890's Prang dropped the card- producing business, unable unable to Keep pace with the German designs making making their way into the country. During the pioneer period. period. from the 1800's to 1850's, parents gave their children hand-made gifts for Christmas because of lack of money and lack of available stores in rural areas. "But they still wanted to give their children something and they usually usually wanted to surprise them," he said. Mr. Jackman noted that one of the toys would have been something similar similar to the horse-drawn log sleigh carved of wood that is part of the display. display. And for the girls, their ght We value the friendships we've built with customers like you. Hope you all have a happy holiday ! i)) Hampton GENERAL CONTRACTOR Jack and Alice Burgess and Sons of JACK BURGESS Plumbing and Heating 263-2151 mothers might have made dolls or doll clothing clothing or a miniature blanket blanket for a doll's bed. The curator said dolls were made from a pattern pattern already printed on material that the mother merely had to sew together together and stuff. Wood wool (wood shavings) and sawdust sawdust were the main ingredients ingredients for the stuffing. The gifts, instead of being being wrapped in colourful paper as they are today, may have been put inside a cornucopia or wrapped in cloth. (Environmentalists (Environmentalists will note that the first gift wrap paper was invented by Hallmark in 1917.) And it would have been a while before the gifts were stored under trees because the first recorded recorded tree decorated in Canada was by Lady Duf- ferin at Rideau Hall in 1872. By the 1880's and 1890's, trees became more popular in early Canadian Canadian homes. . Christmas in the pioneer pioneer time was very family-oriented, family-oriented, Mr. Jackman explained. It wasn't a time for travelling too far away from home Decause often the weather wouldn't permit it. The occasion itself didn't have the same amount of religious undertones undertones as are present today. Victorians, the curator explained, viewed the day as a great celebration because because it was the one day. of the year when even the laborers had the day off work. During that period in England, Mr. Jackman said, many families were poor and didn't have ovens. ovens. So the - Christmas dinner would be taken to the baker who would put the turkey in the oven while people waited. "Then they would cart it home again, hopefully before it got cold," Mr. Jackman explained. Decorations within the home would have been hand-made and usually from paper. Once trees became popular during the festive festive season, hand made decorations and popcorn strings adorned the boughs. Lights on the tree came from candles. The first electric lights came into existence in 1882 in New York City. By the end of the Victorian Victorian period, people were able to hang icicles, glass ornaments and angel angel hair on their Christmas Christmas trees. But, "the most important important article ever invented for Christmas decorations," decorations," was patented in 1892. It was the wire hook for hanging decorations. decorations. While many of these customs were becoming popular, there were still some cultures that didn't treat Christmas with as much flair. The Scots' big celebration celebration during the past was New Year's Eve and their "first footer" tradition. The first person to enter enter a person's house after midnight on New Years Eve had to be a darkhaired darkhaired man, carrying a lump of coal and a glass of whiskey. This would give the occupants of the house a year of good luck. If the first person through the door was blonde or red haired, those in the house would have a year of bad luck. The custom of the mistletoe mistletoe was popular during that time too, although the ornament was called the "kissing ball" which was a ball made of pine cones with mistletoe hanging underneath, One last Victorian tradition tradition was that the tree wasn't trimmed until Christmas Eve and it stayed up for the 12 days of Christmas only. Drop by the museum any time from now until December 21 and take a look at the Christmas display display reflecting the holiday holiday season of another era. New Radio System; For Durham Policé The Durham Regional Police Police Department will be getting getting a new communications system costing $1,350,000. Durham Regional Coun- the purchase til approved last week. The computer aided dispatch dispatch and mobile. data terminal terminal system will enable the force to cope with current and anticipated increases in the volume of calls. CAD provides dispatchers dispatchers with immediate information information and enables them to make decisions on priorities of calls, unit availability and locations of calls. The MDT gives the patrol officer an opportunity of fast access to essential informa tion stored on national, provincial provincial and local data banks. The system, a report said, is designed to be integrated with the 911 system expected expected to come on-stream in the spring of 1991. Funding for the project will come from a 1990 special special levy for police department department communications system, system, 1990 special levy for the Pickering Police Station and the 1991 budget. » I I -A 1 ■ - " . ■ ■ ■ -if ■' -:A • \ ju ill ppp m % Pauline Stephenson, office assistant at the Clarke Museum and Archives, looks at some of the decorations decorations on display at the museum. This is the first year the museum is open at Christmas. But it will be closed as of December 21. So you only have a few days left to see some of the Christmas items popular during the pioneer days. The museum is located in Kirby, off Highway 115/35. j Seasons Q/teetings | u As nature sparkles in her new, white coat, we think of those who have been great friends. tie W Tl Best Wishes lg| 5 SCHWARZ BROTHERS * 2 LIVESTOCK LTD. 3 BUY-SELL or TRADE S J TOP DAIRY CATTLE Sj R.R. 6 623-2895 Bowmanville £ Q&ifiX/ ,_y It's a pleasure to greet our friends at this holiday time... thank you for your much-appreciated patronage! 728-6241 It's beginning to look like Christmas! Hope your home and heart are filled with joy, laughter and good will this glad holiday season. from the Management and Staff Bowmanville Audio-Vision 58 King Street West Telephone 623-2312 B