Christmas Past

La buche du Noel is a festively eye-catching dessert from France. And it wouldn't have been possible if not for a nineteenth century urbanization trend and the widespread availability of cheap sugar. Fun Links Maggie's Creations Patisserie : Maggie Ragaisis's Facebook page, with more lovely baked goods Pretend Radio : Web site for the podcast from Javier, who shares a memory in this...

Unlike other Christmas traditions that Americans import from abroad, The Nutcracker didn't become a Christmas tradition until it reached America. And as far as Christmas traditions go, it's one of the newer ones we have. Fun Links Nutcracker Nation : Book by Jennifer Fisher, the expert guest from this episode Super Co-op Squad : Video game podcast hosted by Johnny Mac, who shares a Chris...

      Holly is inseparable from Christmas. But its use in wintertime celebrations goes back even farther than Christmas itself. Fun Links The Story Behind : Podcast by Emily Prokop, who shares a Christmas memory in this episode Holly Society of America Music from this episode “ Snowing ” — Peter Rudenko, via Free Music Archive “ Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas ” — 12 Tracks of Christmas, vi...

In 1962, the first Christmas cartoon created for television debuted. And even decades later, nothing can compete with the classic cartoons from that era. Fun Links Weird Christmas : We heard from Craig Kringle and his podcast, Weird Christmas Tis the Season TV : Book by Joanna Wilson, the expert guest in this episode Christmas TV History : Joanna Wilson's Web site Fat Packs Podcast : The podc...

In a first-of-its-kind crossover collaboration, seven Christmas podcasters are coming together to read you the classic Christmas story, The House of the Seven Santas , by John Kendrick Bangs. Each podcast will present a few minutes of the story. You'll hear seven different Christmas podcasts in all to hear the story in its entirety. Here's the full list: Part 1: Christmas Past (you are h...

The first Christmas lights appeared in 1882, and would forever change the scenery at Christmas time. Fun Links Can't Wait for Christmas : The podcast hosted by Tim Babb, who shared a memory in this episode Christmas Ornaments, Lights and Decorations : Book by George Johnson, the expert guest in this episode Music from this episode “ Relinquish ” — Podington Bear, via Free Music Archive “ Swin...

When the first department store Santa appeared in 1890, it wasn't just a cross section of Christmas and commerce. It was also a major step in the evolution of Santa Claus. Fun Links First Department Store Santa : The Web site created by John Merian, who appears in this episode Eventually Supertrain : The Web site for Daniel Budnick, who shares a Christmas memory on the show Music from this ep...

You may cringe at the idea that Christmas advertisements are a legit Christmas tradition. But they're undeniably part of the atmosphere of the season...and have an interesting history behind them. Fun Links Genuine Chit Chat : In this episode we hear from Mike, host of Genuine Chit Chat. Check him out on iTunes, or wherever you get your podcasts Christmas in America : The book by Penne Restad...

For the final episode of 2016, we celebrate Christmas Day with Brian's family and take a look back at the 2016 Christmas season.  Thank you, everyone, for a wonderful first season of the podcast! I hope to be back again next year with more stories from Christmas Past.  Things will slow down on social media after today, but I'm not going anywhere, you can always find me on Facebook, Insta...

It's Christmas Eve! In our second-to-last episode of the season, Brian talks about his favorite Christmas Eve traditions and we hear from some of Brian's family members. Subscribe on iTunes and visit www.christmaspastpodcast.com for show notes and extra content. Search for Christmas Past podcast on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. Connect with Me Links to all the things https://christma...

Even though you've heard mention of sugar plum every Christmas of your life, do you actually know what they are?  In this episode, we hear about the history of the sugar plum and how it came to be associated with Christmas.  We have two memories this episode! Both of them recall favorite childhood Christmas movies.  Search for Christmas Past podcast on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram and vis...

Getting tired of 24-hour Christmas movie marathons and stale cartoon specials? Take a trip back in time to the golden age of radio. You may like to check out the Christmas Old Time Radio podcast or search around Archive.org to continue your listening after this episode.  We hear from Chicago DJ Steve Darnall and some Christmas memories from Anna in California. I can't believe we're almos...

Americans will send over a billion Christmas cards this year. Even in this age of instantaneous communication, the physical Christmas card is still inseparable from our modern holiday celebration. The Christmas card is an English invention. A man named Henry Cole is credited with creating the first commercially produced Christmas card in 1843. But more interesting are the social, economic, and tec...

The appearance of festive gift wrap in stores is one of the first signs that the Christmas season is here. But wrapping Christmas gifts is a relatively new custom. In this episode of Christmas Past, we learn about the surprisingly interesting history of wrapping paper, with some help from Pat Lavin of the Framingham History Center.  Corey Constable, host of the Omitted podcast, shares a Christmas...

The story of Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer is a classic underdog story, but maybe not the way you think. In this episode, we discuss the unlikely journey of Robert L. May from workaday copywriter to creator of an icon. In this episode we'll hear from Peter Carini, a librarian at Dartmouth College, which holds a collection of May's work. And we'll hear a Christmas memory from Kathy...

The history of writing letters to Santa has some strange surprises in store for us. In this episode we hear from Gus Ruiz from the US Postal Service, Nancy Pope from the Smithsonian Institution's Postal Museum, and a Christmas Memory from Kenny in Ontario. Subscribe to Christmas Past on iTunes or however you get your podcasts. Search for "Christmas Past podcast" on Facebook, Twitter...

For centuries, gingerbread has been connected with all kinds of celebrations and holidays. And what could be more Christmassy than a gingerbread house? In this episode, we look at the history of gingerbread and the somewhat mysterious origins of the gingerbread house.  We'll hear from my mom, who made a gingerbread house every year when I was growing up. We'll also hear from Melissa Ferr...

We're finishing off the series about Santa with a look at what happened to the legend when it reached America. The Santa we know today is largely an American invention, based on the Dutch legend of Sinter Klaas. Dr. Bruce David Forbes joins one last time to tell us about the American contributions that put the finishing touches on Santa.  Subscribe to Christmas Past on iTunes or however you g...

Continuing where we left off in part 1, we continue exploring the legend of St. Nicholas. This time, we look at how many cultures left their own imprint on the legend as it spread across Europe.  Once again, I'm joined by professor and author Dr. Bruce David Forbes. We also hear our first Christmas memory of the season from Hope in Massachusetts. You can submit a memory by recording a voice m...

We're kicking off the 2016 season with a 3-part series on the evolution of St. Nicholas to Santa Claus. Most episodes this season are for the whole family, but this series is just for the grownups.  In this episode, I cover the life of the historical St. Nicholas, a 4th century bishop from Myra (modern day Turkey), and the legends that followed his death.  Don't forget to subscribe to Ch...

With the holiday season just weeks away, I thought now would be the perfect time to tell you about the Christmas Past podcast. Subscribe now on iTunes or however you get your podcasts, and visit me at christmaspastpodcast.com Connect with Me Links to all the things https://christmaspastpodcast.com/links Email: christmaspastpodcast@gmail.com Books Of Christmases Long, Long Ago: Surprising Tradition...