Civil War Lecture: 19th Century Christmas Traditions (Virtual)

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Time & Place

  • Civil War Lecture: 19th Century Christmas Traditions (Virtual)
    • The Mariners' Museum and Park

      December 17, 2021, 12 p.m.

      100 Museum Drive
      Newport News, VA 23606
    • Phone: 757-596-2222
      Highway Exit: 258A from I-64
      Website: Click here to visit us online

Description

Presenter: John V. Quarstein, director emeritus of the USS Monitor Center

FREE. Advance registration is required.

Web: https://marinersmuseum.org/civil-war-lectures/

 

About the presentation: Christmas Day has been an official American holiday since 1870; however, the celebration traces its beginnings to the 4th century and was probably combined with several pagan festivals. Because of this, connections to events like Yuletide prompted Puritans to ban Christmas. By the 19th century, Christmas trees with candles, mistletoe, and sumptuous meals became commonplace. St. Nickolas was an old Nordic tradition and was an actual person dating to the 3rd century. Nevertheless, the German-born American caricaturist and editorial cartoonist Thomas Nast first sketched the beloved image of Santa Claus in 1861 depicting the figure we still revere today.