Holiday traditions link the past and the present—a special family recipe handed down from generation to generation, singing classic carols, or displaying beloved decorations.

However, some traditions have been left on the trash heap of history. How many of us have tasted figgy pudding or wassail? Can you believe that Christmas was not celebrated in a certain period of history because it was considered a pagan holiday? Or that at one time, Twelfth Night was a bigger celebration than Christmas in the South? When was the last time you attended a Twelfth Night party?

Before pumpkin pie, people indulged in stewed pumpkins or Pompoin Pie, a hollowed out pumpkin filled with apples, molassas or honey, spices and milk and baked whole in the ashes. Those sound worthy of the discarding, in my opinion, along with burning candles on Christmas trees.

That doesn’t mean that we don’t look back on some traditions with nostalgia and wish them back, although they may no longer be practical in modern society.

I asked some of our lanterns to share some holiday traditions from the era of their novels.

Anne M. Beggs

I love holidays. I love reading about different holidays with more reasons to celebrate joy and gratitude.

My WIP, The Highest Love, Book Three, includes a sad turn of events for Eloise of Dahlquin, as she longs to attend both the Winter Solstice bonfire then the lavish Christmas banquet and festivities continuing for twelve days. The hall is bedecked with fresh boughs, new reed flooring, and succulent venison, tender as spring lamb, gravy so thick it could be spread with a knife, the aroma evoking memories of every great meal ever partaken. In memory alone, because she was too ill to eat. Was there no better time to be ripe with pregnancy, she lamented, rubbing her flat stomach? To feel God’s light and blessing as all worshipped the Virgin Mary and motherhood. As the solstice saw the rebirth of the Oak King, and Mary bore Jesus. This was a sacred time to be female, pregnant, a mother.

Christmas and Winter solstice are no strangers to my writing. Dear Santa: A 1969 college student faces life decisions while working at the Santa photo shop in the mall. The Dragon Lord: Is a medieval tale where a young bride and her husband argue over her need to celebrate the Celtic Solstice as well as the Christian Christmas. Swords crash, and sparks flash in Dahlquin.

Ana Brazil

Fanny Newcomb and the Irish Channel Ripper, my first historical mystery, is set in Gilded Age New Orleans. Although the sleuthing takes place around Eastertime, I researched every holiday custom I could. I was very surprised and delighted to discover that in 1889 New Orleanians— like their fellow American citizens North, South, East, and West — celebrated Thanksgiving.

Celebrating Thanksgiving might not seem like a big deal to you, but since I knew that President Lincoln had (in 1863) officially proclaimed the last Thursday in November as a National Day of Thanksgiving, and since I also knew that—in 1889—New Orleanians were still protesting Federal Reconstruction mandates, I thought that maybe, New Orleanians might reject the call to Thanksgiving.

They did not. As recorded in the local newspapers, New Orleanians commemorated Thanksgiving with morning church services and an evening family feast.

 

And what a feast! The Picayune’s Creole Cook Book of 1901 provides a complete menu for Thanksgiving Day Dinner (or as the Creoles called it le Jour d’Action de Graces). If you look closely (because there are an amazing twenty-one courses), you’ll see that—just like today—turkey, mashed potatoes, and cranberry sauce were served.

Oysters on Half Shell ~ Cream of Asparagus Soup ~ Spanish Olives ~ Celery ~Mixed Pickles

Radishes ~ Salted Almond ~ Baked Red Snapper a la Creole ~ Mashed Potatoes

Lamb Chops au Petit Pois ~ Chicken Saute aux Champignons

Cauliflower, Sauce Blanche ~ Pineapple Fritters au Rhum

Pates de Foies Gras ~ Stuffed Tomatoes

Turkey Stuffed With Chestnuts, Cranberry Sauce

Endive Salad, French Dressing ~ Pababotte a la Creole ~Plum Pudding, Hard or Brandy Sauce

Pumpkin Pie ~ Lemon Sherbet ~ Assorted Cakes

Assorted Fruits ~ Assorted Nuts ~ Raisins ~Neufchatel

Quince Marmalade ~ Crackers ~ Cafe Noir

Interested in recreating some of these late 19th century dishes? Check out the online 1928 version of the The Picayune’s Creole Cook Book.

C.V. Lee

In the medieval era, many European countries celebrated the 12 days of Christmas. But with the rise of Protestantism, the festivities were toned down and, in some countries, Christmas was banned altogether for a time.

Some of the thing that disappeared include:

1. The Yule Log – At one time, the yule log was an enormous log or an entire tree which was slowly fed into the fire so that it burned for the entire twelve days. But it hasn’t completely disappeared. Mostly it has just taken a different form – a rolled cake decorated to look like a log.
2. Wassailing – The original caroling which involved a lot of alcohol and  going from house to house singing bawdy songs.
3. Feast of Fools – Celebrated around January 1st, this involved a junior clergyman dressed up as a bishop and turning everything  upside down. Donkeys were brought into the church. Mock, comic masses were performed along with a lot of dancing.
4. The Lord of Misrule – Most associated with Twelfth Night, a servant or person of low-rank was appointed to “rule” the manor or the village for the 12 days of Christmas. They instigated pranks, games, and other ribald entertainment. Even the nobility were to obey the Lord of Misrule, although there was surely limits.
5. King’s Cake – A food tradition that was originally served at the Epiphany feast (January 6th), and is still a tradition in many countries. However, in the United States, it has been adopted into the festivities associated with Mardi Gras.

Are there holiday traditions that you wish would be brought back?