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“Christmas is not a time nor a season, but a state of mind. To cherish peace and goodwill, to be plenteous in mercy, is to have the real spirit of Christmas.”

—CALVIN COOLIDGE

Winter at Lake Tahoe, Calif.

Waldron LAUDER PROFESSOR, UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA

A LIFE-CHANGING BESTSELLER

Capturing the Hearts of Millions

This book expounds upon the profound principles of Truthfulness, Compassion, and Tolerance. It focuses on a long-forgotten term called “cultivation,” and the importance of moral character on one’s path to spiritual perfection. The book explains the role of karma as the root cause of illness and tribulations, along with many other mysteries of life and the universe.

Zhuan Falun, the main text of the spiritual practice Falun Dafa, was a national bestseller in China in the 1990s, and has since been translated into over 40 languages. Find out why it has captured the hearts and minds of tens of millions of people in over 100 countries worldwide!

Scan the QR code with your phone camera to open our website, or visit:

“Falun Gong is, in my judgement, the single greatest spiritual movement in Asia today. There’s nothing that begins to compare with it in courage and importance.”

“What made Falun Gong stand out from other qigong exercises and meditation practices was a moral system compassion, truthfulness, and forbearance— unmistakably Buddhist in origin.”

Mark Palmer FORMER U.S.

AMBASSADOR

Arthur

Contents

Features

10 | Christmas Memories

A reader recalls the Christmas of his childhood, full of simple joys, com munity spirit, and holiday cheer.

16

| Fueling the Entrepreneurial Dream

Steve Case, who co-founded AOL, is on a quest to find the most excit ing startups in the places least expected.

24

| Young Philanthropists

From learning to fundraise to stra tegically giving away one’s wealth, the art of giving can be taught to our children.

26 | Farming Like It’s 1866

A fifth-generation Georgia farm revisits traditional practices to secure modern success.

64

30 | Wisdom From Faith

Belief in God gave entrepreneur Earl W. Stafford the inspiration for how to give meaningfully.

34

| Why I Love America

One wife rediscovers America through her husband’s eyes.

36

| Harley-Davidson

The origin story behind America’s most iconic motorbike.

History

40

| A Journey of Peril

When only 21, George Washington braved weeks of danger—enemies, wild animals, wilderness—all to deliver an ultimatum.

46

| Relying On Faith

Captured by the Wampanoag in 1676, Mary Rowlandson found her strength to survive through God’s mercy.

50

| Dining With Jefferson

The president enjoyed small parties, lively conversation, fine wines—and displaying his prized mockingbird.

54

| A Valiant First Lady

Frail Lucretia Garfield earned the country’s admiration for her courage as the president lay dying.

58

| Software Pioneer Margaret Hamilton wrote the code that averted computer failure minutes before the lunar landing.

Lifestyle

64 | Santa’s Flight, Declassified

From fighter pilots to time travel, we get an insider’s look at NORAD’s jolliest mission of the year.

68 | A Favorite Christmas Classic

What would life be like without George Bailey? We nearly expe rienced that, as “It’s a Wonderful Life” almost didn’t make it to the big screen.

76 | Book Recommender Wind down the Mississippi on a flatbed through the history of the river; or visit Laura Ingalls Wilder in the manuscript that started her “Little House” series.

78 | Cookie Time Sweeten the holiday season with these festive cookie recipes.

84 | A Sweet Treat Doscher’s keeps the Christmas wonder alive with handmade candy canes

88 | A Very Colonial Christmas It’s the most wonderful time of the year to visit the world’s largest living history museum.

68

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Editor’s Note

Dear Readers,

Sometimes, a good business idea just needs a bit of help from a guardian angel. For AOL co-founder Steve Case (page 16), it’s about traveling far beyond usual startup hubs, such as Silicon Valley, and into America’s heartland to find and fund the entrepreneurs whose solutions are poised to make a significant impact—certainly in their imme diate communities, but also with the potential to thrive farther afield. It’s an inspiring look at the vibrant spirit of American innovation in action.

For holiday inspiration, look to the holiday film “It’s a Wonderful Life” and learn how this American classic almost didn’t come to be (page 68); travel back in time to experience Christmas on a farm during the 1950s through a child’s eyes (page 10); and discover the in tricacies of how NORAD tracks Santa every year (page 64), despite unpredictable factors such as inclement weather, the weight of the presents in Santa’s sleigh, and, not least, excited children who are still awake.

Wishing you and yours all the very best for the holidays.

Editor-In-Chief Channaly Philipp Editor@AmericanEssence.net

American Essence

FOR EVERYONE WHO LOVES THIS COUNTRY

PUBLISHER Dana Cheng

EDITORIAL

Editor-In-Chief Managing Editor History & Literature Editor Arts Editor Lifestyle & Food Editor Editors-At-Large

Production Assistant Lead Designer Designers

Channaly Philipp

Annie Wu

Sharon Kilarski

Jennifer Schneider Crystal Shi

Tynan Beatty

Maria Han

CREATIVE

Jennifer Tseng Cristina Greaney Jasmina Zhang

Photo Editor

Dariya Akdeniz Michael Kurov Sunny Lo Tatsiana Moon

CONTRIBUTORS

George V. Caylor, Poppy Richie, Deena C. Bouknight, Krista Thomas, Mardi Suhs, Paul Prezzia, Andrew Benson Brown, Bob Kirchman, Sydney Slack, Andria Pressel, Dustin Bass, Mark Lardas, Jennifer McGruther, Alice Giordano, Rachael Dymski

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A Champion for American Innovation

Entrepreneur Steve Case, who co-founded AOL, makes the case for investing in startups in America’s heartland

WRITTEN BY Annie Wu & Emel Akan

What do an at-home water testing kit company, a luxury watch maker, and an online farmland real estate investment platform have in common?

First, they were started in America’s heart land—Zionsville, Indiana; Detroit, Michigan; and Fayetteville, Arkansas, respectively—far from the usual, bicoastal venture capital hubs. Second, their initial potential was spotted and funded by AOL co-founder Steve Case and his team of investors, as part of his Rise of the Rest Seed Fund’s efforts to find and invest in the most innovative startups outside of Silicon Valley. The watchmaker, Shinola, is one of the more familiar names, but hundreds of start-ups have flourished so far under Case’s initiative.

The premise behind his idea is simple: Local entrepreneurs know the problems that face their communities, and they know the solutions. What they need is funding.

For example, in 2016, the founder of the at-home water testing kit company, Megan Glover, simply wanted to find out if her local water was safe for her children to drink. When her local utility company proved unhelpful, and a local water testing company quoted a whopping sum of $3,000 for a test, she took matters into her own hands. Today,

her company, 120Water, fills about 100,000 kits a year, each sold for $50 to $80, in use across 180,000 locations in the country. Government agencies, schools, and local water systems across more than 19 states use its products.

When Case held a pitch competition in Indianapolis in 2017, a stop on one of his cross-country Rise of the Rest bus tours, Glover had taken the chance to present her pitch. Case was immediately intrigued. “The idea was simple to grasp, completely original, and it addressed a true need in the commu nity,” he wrote in his new book, “The Rise of the Rest: How Entrepreneurs in Surprising Places are Building the New American Dream,” which documents his findings after his tours. Glover was chosen to win $100,000 to start her company.

Inspiring Transformation

LEFT Steve Case believes that all entrepreneurs should be afforded the opportunities to pursue their ideas to fruition.

After leaving AOL in 2005, Case launched Revolution to back entrepreneurs with growth, venture, and seed funds. Since 2014, Case and Revolution have traveled the country by bus, holding a pitch competition and awarding $100,000 to a winning company at every stop. In 2017, Revolution launched the first $150 million Rise of the Rest Seed Fund, backed by well-known entrepreneurs like Eric Schmidt, Jeff Bezos, Tory Burch, and the Walton family (Walmart); a second $150 million seed fund was announced in 2019. Today, the bus tours continue, but the

Milwaukee’s Hot Wheels

What started out as a dream for four young lads from Milwaukee became a symbol of American freedom and individuality. The classic rumble of the engine, the sleek body, and the iconic bar and shield symbol are sure to turn heads when adventuring on and off the road. Here are some fun facts about the iconic brand.

The popular Sportster model was first released in 1957. People who own Harleys can join a club called HOG (Harley

WRITTEN BY Maria Han

About the Founders

Harley-Davidson was founded by William Harley and the three Davidson brothers: Arthur, William, and Walter. They were bike enthusiasts who wanted to build a motor-driven bicycle.

Why Harley?

It all began with a collab oration between William Harley and Arthur, who met while working at Barth Manufacturing. Harley spearheaded the design for an internal combustion engine.

Early Prototype

The first bike was sold, supposedly to a Davidson family friend, in 1903. A second prototype was completed around 1904, and it is now housed at the HarleyDavidson Museum in Milwaukee.

A Brand Is Born

When the company was incorporated in 1907, Harley took the role of chief engineer and treasurer. Walter was selected as the president, while Arthur was the general sales manager and William was in charge of the manufacturing process.

Fun Fact

• Harley-Davidson released its first electric motorcycle in 2019, which can go from 0 to 60 in 3 seconds.

Why do Bikers Wear Leather?

Mr. Washington Goes to Pittsburgh

The young officer volunteers for a treacherous journey and gains providential experience in battle

WRITTEN BY Paul Prezzia

It is a little known fact that in addition to being the foremost Founding Father, George Washington was unwittingly involved in the first world war. What Americans call the French and Indian War, what Europeans call the Seven Years’ War, took place because of a fight over Pittsburgh. This fight was begun by no other than George Washington. It was in the year 1754, long before the name “Pittsburgh” was given to the location where the Allegheny River from the north and the Monongahela River from the south come together and form the Ohio River. It was decades before Washington gained his immortal reputation in the American Revolution.

In the early 1700s, the Ohio River Valley (from modern-day Pittsburgh to St. Louis) was extremely valuable both to the English and to the French. After acquiring treaties with different Native American peoples in the valley, both of these European nations claimed the territory for themselves and had regular soldiers and Native American allies to back up those claims. The English also enlisted their colonists’ help. However, in terms of bases of operations, the territory was far from the settled areas of either nation. The main French settlements were up north

along the St. Lawrence River, in what is now Canada, while the small cities and towns of the British colonies were all on the other side of the Appalachians.

In 1753, the British lieutenant governor of Virginia, Robert Dinwiddie, received autho rization to protect the British claims in the Ohio Valley. There was no war yet; the French would first have to be given the equivalent of an eviction notice. Maj. George Washington, then 21 years old, volunteered for the job of messenger.

A Perilous Journey

For George Washington, the job would require a round-trip journey of a thousand miles through the wilderness of what is today Virginia, West Virginia, Maryland, and Pennsylvania. While 110 miles or so of his approximate journey through western Pennsylvania can be completed today in a couple of hours by tourists driving the Washington’s Trail 1753, in his time, there

RIGHT A portrait of George Washington and his personal servant, William ‘‘Billy’’ Lee, standing upon a bluff overlooking the Hudson River. Painted by John Trumbull in 1780, this authoritative depiction of Washington became the first available in Europe.

The President Entertains

President Thomas Jefferson applied his genius even to the everyday matters of his dinner parties

WRITTEN BY Bob Kirchman

In 1962, our young, charismatic president John F. Kennedy was entertaining the year’s Nobel Prize winners at the White House. He said of the group, “I think this is the most extraordinary collection of talent, of human knowledge, that has ever been gath ered together at the White House, with the possible exception of when Thomas Jefferson dined alone.” It is a great statement, to be sure.

Feasts of Wisdom

The journals of Margaret Bayard Smith tell us some interesting details about her visits to the “President’s House,” where she and her husband actually dined with Thomas Jefferson, our country’s third president. Margaret Smith came to Washington as a young bride in 1800. Her husband was a newspaperman and a strong supporter of Jefferson’s bid for the presidency. The Smiths and Jefferson fre quently entertained each other. Unfortunately, Jefferson’s wife, Martha, had died years earlier in 1782.

The President’s House, far from being the stately edifice we know today, was a work in progress. Jefferson’s personal quarters were furnished as befit a man of his many interests. Smith writes;

The apartment in which he took most interest was his cabinet; this he had arranged accord ing to his own taste and convenience. It was a spacious room. In the centre was a long table, with drawers on each side, in which were deposited not only articles appropriate to the place, but a set of carpenter’s tools in one and small garden implements in another from the use of which he derived much amusement. Around the walls were maps, globes, charts, books, etc.

This collection is reminiscent of Jefferson’s personal effects at Monticello. He placed such importance on reading that he would often greet his guests while putting down a book, both at the President’s House and back home in Monticello.

Jefferson had no long, rectangular tables where guests would sit in long rows, awk wardly conversing with those assigned within earshot. Instead, Jefferson intro duced a round table and limited the number of guests to around 14. He preferred to be addressed as “Mr. Jefferson,” not “Mr. President.” The man truly enjoyed lively dis cussion, and this arrangement assured that no one was left out of it.

Far from reveling in his own words, Jefferson surrounded himself with a rich feast of wisdom, made all the more enjoy able by the implementation of intimacy and courtesy. His guests tended to be interesting people such as Alexander von Humbolt, the great Prussian naturalist and baron. Jefferson loved to mix such intellectuals with the important people of government whom he might have felt compelled to entertain. Smith certainly gives the impression that these were rich events to be savored rather than social obligations to be endured. She notes:

Guests were generally selected in reference to their tastes, habits and suitability in all respects, which attention had a wonderful effect in making his parties more agree able, than dinner parties usually are; this limited number prevented the company’s forming little knots and carrying on in undertones separate conversations, a custom so common and almost unavoidable

When NORAD fighter pilots intercept Santa’s sleigh, they have the honor of tipping their wings to St. Nick—who always waves back.

Where in the World Is Santa Claus?

WRITTEN BY Andria Pressel

Every Christmas Eve, NORAD puts its high-tech missile tracking systems on a very special mission: following Santa’s journey around the world

For over 60 years, the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD), a binational defensive agency that monitors U.S.–Canadian aerospace for threats, has faithfully tracked the move ments of Santa Claus as he travels on Christmas Eve to deliver presents to boys and girls across the world.

This unlikely responsibility is something of a Christmas miracle itself. It began by accident in 1955, when a child called a misprinted phone number in the local newspaper in hopes of reaching Santa. Instead, the phone rang Air Force Col. Harry Shoup’s secret military hotline at the Continental Air Defense Command, NORAD’s predecessor. Quick on his feet, Shoup assured the child that he was indeed Santa Claus and mustered a group of airmen to answer incoming calls for Santa. Since then, what began as a child’s accidental phone call has blossomed into an annual program followed by millions. Now, the volunteer-supported hotline receives at least 130,000 calls each year, dutifully answering queries about Santa’s location.

American Essence spoke with 1st Lt. Sean Carter, this year’s NORAD Tracks Santa program director, to get the insider’s scoop on the magic behind Santa’s incredible journey— and to get the answers that kids young and old most want to hear.

American Essence: What is your job at NORAD? What do you do when you’re not tracking Santa?

our community outreach division. We have the greatest job in the DoD (Department of Defense)! It’s our team’s charge to interface with the American and Canadian people—to foster relationships with the beautiful city of Colorado Springs, which NORAD and USNORTHCOM Headquarters call home, to showcase the incredible binational relationship that is wholly unique to the NORAD mission, and to assure our citizens that they can sleep safe and sound while we have the watch.

AE: What technologies are used to track Santa, and how do they work?

Mr. Carter: The NORAD North Warning System—a powerful radar system with 47 installations strung across northern Canada and Alaska—allows the team here to know the second that Santa begins his flight. Our guiding light, now 67 years since our first foray in Santa tracking, has always been Rudolph’s red nose. It’s that little nose so bright that allows NORAD to track the jolly old fellow’s flight path through infrared technologies.

Once airborne, the same satellites that provide warning of possible missile launches against North America kick into high gear. The intensity of Rudolph’s nose is on par with that of a missile launch, and the satellites have no trouble following their route.

Canadian NORAD fighter pilots, flying CF-18s, take off from Newfoundland and accompany him as he travels through Canada. While in the United States, American NORAD fighter pilots in F-15s, F-16s, and F-22s have the honor of tipping their wings to St. Nick. All of these systems come together to provide

“

The Greatest Christmas Movie That Almost Wasn’t

Discover the long journey of how ‘It’s a Wonderful Life’ came to be an American classic

WRITTEN BY Dustin Bass

It’s a Wonderful Life” is argu ably the greatest holiday film in American cinematic history.

Frank Capra, the legendary film director, stated in his autobiog raphy that it was his greatest film. In fact, he thought it was the greatest film ever made.

The premise of the film is that a man so down on himself that he wishes he had never been born gets a glimpse of how the world would have been without him. The premise of this article is not what if the film had never been made, but rather the fact that it almost wasn’t—and how after it was made, it was nearly lost to memory.

LEFT A movie poster for the 1946 film “It’s a Wonderful Life,” directed by Frank Capra,

Selling the Story

Philip Van Doren Stern was the creator of the story that became “It’s a Wonderful Life.” There are two versions of how he came up with the idea. He either dreamed it, or the idea hit him while he was shaving. Either way, the story came to him fully intact. He knew exactly how the story started and ended. The problem was writing it.

Actually, Stern had no problem writing. He was a writer and editor by trade, though he specialized in history, primarily Civil War history. By the end of his career, the highly respected historian would write more than 40 books. But this fic tional holiday vision of his would prove more difficult than he antic ipated. It wasn’t until the spring of 1943, five years after he first tried to write it, that he was finally satisfied

with it, or at least satisfied to the point that he wasn’t embarrassed to show his agent.

His agent, Shirley Collier, pitched the 4,000-word story to various magazines to no avail. Stern, disap pointed that no one was interested in the inspiring tale, decided to turn it into a Christmas card—a 24-page Christmas card entitled “The

vvv

Philip Van Doren Stern was the creator of the story that became ‘It’s a Wonderful Life.’

starring James Stewart and Donna Reed.

Greatest Gift: A Christmas Tale”— and sent it to 200 friends and family members.

Christmas ended, but the card circulated. The card wound up in the hands of RKO producer David Hempstead. Collier called Stern to inform him that she had sold the movie rights of “The Greatest

Gift” to RKO for $10,000. The story was published later that year by Reader’s Scope magazine, and Good Housekeeping published a version of the story under the title “The Man Who Was Never Born.” Stern’s story was finally on its way to stardom. Or was it?

Stuck in Hollywood

“The Greatest Gift” had found its way into Hollywood, but the Hollywood writers struggled in much the same way Stern had when he first tried writing it. They simply couldn’t make a go of it. Though RKO was ready to film and Cary Grant had agreed to play the lead role, after three screenplays were rejected, the project was scrapped. According to Frank Capra, it was Charles Koerner, the head of RKO studio, who mentioned the film

idea to him. Capra fell in love with the story, purchased the rights to the film, and decided to produce the film inde pendently with his new production company Liberty Films.

It still, however, needed a screenplay that captured the heart of the story. Several other writers attempted to chisel away at it. Even the successful Dalton Trumbo tried his hand at it, though none of his suggestions were used in the film. It wasn’t until Frances Goodrich and Albert Hackett, the husband-and-wife duo that wrote the Pulitzer Prize winning play “The Diary of Anne Frank,” created a script that worked—sort of. The script they wrote was still somewhat incomplete, due primarily to Capra’s impatience. Goodrich and Hackett stopped writing, the script was sent in, and other writers, like Jo Swerling, Michael Wilson, Dorothy Parker, and even Capra himself helped finish it.

From Cary Grant to Jimmy Stewart

With the rights being sold to Liberty Films, the search for a new lead began. World War II had recently ended, and Jimmy Stewart had just come home. In much the same way George Bailey witnessed his world turned upside down, Stewart’s life back in Hollywood was almost unrecognizable. The pre vious three years he had been fighting the Nazis as a bomber commander in the Army Air Force, earning two Distinguished Flying Crosses, three Air Medals, and France’s Croix de Guerre. In much the same way he had experienced success in Hollywood, he flew through the military ranks, rising from private to colonel in a span of four years. Along with those successes, the stress of flying 20 B-24 bomber missions over Nazi-occupied Europe caused Stewart to develop post-trau matic stress disorder.

Now, he was back home wondering if his film career had come to an end. His

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The stress of flying 20 B-24 bomber missions over Nazioccupied Europe caused Stewart to develop post-traumatic stress disorder.

ABOVE George Bailey (James Stewart) is surrounded by worried loan customers following the stock market crash of 1929 that set off the Great Depression.

RIGHT With George facing the prospect of jail for his company’s missing funds, he comes home to his family preparing for Christmas Eve.

BAKING UP HOLIDAY TRADITIONS

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WRITTEN BY Jennifer McGruther

AMERICA’ S FIRST CHRISTMAS cookie is a beast of a recipe. It calls for a full pound of butter rubbed into 3 pounds of flour, a pound and a half of sugar, and nearly a cup of coriander seed all mixed with sour milk and a bit of pearlash (a sort of old-fashioned baking soda). If that’s not enough, the recipe’s author, Amelia Simmons, suggests aging the cookies in an earthenware container for six months—meaning you’d have to start planning to make this Yuletide treat right around the summer solstice.

Published in 1796, Simmons’s book, “American Cookery,” reflected a time of rapid change as the new nation began to define its own culi nary legacy. Prior to its publication, most culinary education focused on British recipes. Simmons was the first to capture the American spirit, through her inclusion of New World crops such as pumpkin and corn.

She also drew from immigrant communities. In the 17th and 18th centuries, German and Dutch immigrants settled in the Northeast, and they brought their traditions with them. Among them was the

“koekje,” from which Simmons is believed to have drawn inspiration for her buttery, coriander-spiked treat, which she named “Another Christmas Cookey.” Many of America’s most beloved recipes today, from sugar cookies and spritz cookies to gingerbread men, originated in the traditions of these immigrant communities.

These sweets are now readily found at Christmas cookie swaps and on bake trays throughout America, but others have remained more localized. About the time that the Dutch and German settlers were bringing their spritz and gingerbread to New England, the Spanish brought their recipes to the American southwest. Nicole Maes, a New Mexico native, grew up baking Christmas biscochitos: a dis tinctive New Mexican shortbread made with flour, sugar, lard, and plenty of anise seed, and dusted in cinnamon-sugar. She recalls how, at age 5, she sat at her grandmother’s kitchen table and watched her mix the lard into the flour; the room would fill with a subtle bacon-like aroma as the cookies baked. Maes

estimates that her family has made the cookies for as long as they have been around.

Like Maes, Daniel Sluys remem bers growing up baking his family’s cookies. They ran Sluys’ Bakery in Poulsbo, Washington, which he now operates today. In business for over 100 years, the bakery has fed the quiet coastal community for genera tions. It’s a region whose temperate climate lends itself well to farming, and many Norwegian immigrant families found a home there in the late 19th century. Among the most popular items at the bakery are the pepparkakor, spiced Scandinavian cookies akin to gingersnaps, with a crisp texture and plenty of spice. Once, they baked 140 dozen for a community bonfire.

While chocolate chip cookies and fudge remain unfailingly popular across America, it’s these regional Christmas cookies that often hold the greatest character. Passed down from parent to child for gen erations, these festive recipes tell sweet stories of American heritage, celebration, and the legacy of the family kitchen. •

A collection of holiday cookie recipes fit for Santa, a cookie swap, or simply to enjoy with loved ones

Biscochitos

RECIPE BY Nicole Maes

NICOLE MAES has been making her family’s biscochito recipe for years. It’s a delicately sweet cookie with a delightful punch of anise and a little cherry brandy for good measure. She cautions that you may need to hide half of them because your guests will snap them up quickly.

For the Cookies

• 3 cups all-purpose flour

• 1/2 teaspoon salt

• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

• 3/4 cup pork lard

• 3/4 cup granulated sugar

• 1 tablespoon anise seed

• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

• 1 egg

• 1/4 cup cherry brandy

For the Topping

• 1 cup granulated sugar

• 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon

Combine the flour, salt, and baking powder together in a medium bowl. Set aside.

In a separate bowl, cream the lard and sugar together with anise seed, vanilla, and eggs until well-combined.

Beat the lard mixture into the flour mixture until the dough turns crumbly, then pour the brandy over the dough and mix it until it just comes together. Form the dough into two balls, wrap them with plastic wrap, and place them in the fridge to chill overnight.

The next day, heat the oven to 350°F and line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.

Dust your working surface with flour, then roll out the dough to 1/8-inch thickness. Cut the dough into individual cookies. Working in batches, place the cut-out cookies onto pre pared baking sheets and bake until golden and barely set, about 10 minutes.

While the cookies bake, prepare the topping by mixing the cinnamon and sugar together. Dip the cookies into the cinnamon sugar while they’re still hot.

Colonial Williamsburg at Christmastime

At the world’s largest living history museum, the spirit of Christmas past is well and alive

WRITTEN BY Rachael Dymski

There’s no place like home for the holidays— except perhaps Colonial Williamsburg. Here, the air smells like gingerbread, the clip-clopping of horse hooves travels up and down the lane as they pull carriages, and the a cappella voices of a choir sing Christmas carols on the street corner.

Christmas in Colonial Williamsburg

Christmas is a feast for all the senses, and Colonial Williamsburg jumps in with both feet to celebrate the season.

“On our yearly calendar we have five seasons,” said Nathan Ryalls, the manager of guest experiences at Colonial Williamsburg. “Spring, summer, fall, winter, and holiday.”

The Christmas season, which runs from Thanksgiving to New Year’s Day, turns the world’s largest living history museum into an 18th-century wonderland, where visitors can both learn about the past and soak up the best of the holiday season.

The Christmas decorations are not typical: There are hardly any Christmas trees inside the

homes, apart from the one in the Rockefeller house. The wreaths, crafted by hand, tell stories about what was important to the residents of this town—for example, the weaver’s wreath is decorated with old wooden spools, and the tavern’s wreath is adorned with drinking mugs. All the materials that go into the wreaths have to have been avail able in the 18th century.

It’s nearly impossible not to be filled with the holiday spirit while walking down Duke of Gloucester Street, past the markets that sell tiny dolls and wooden drumsticks that would make for perfect chil dren’s gifts. As we sipped hot choc olate and wandered through the cooks’ gardens, we listened to inter preters talk about mouth-watering Christmas dishes.

“Minced pies, of course, and roasted duck,” one interpreter said to my father-in-law. “Fowl, pheas ant, and black pudding.” Christmas in Colonial Williamsburg was never a one-day event, but rather a season filled with food, festivities, and games.

“We offer a ton of experiences focused on Christmas,” Ryalls said. “We offer programs that look at

Christmas and the Constitution. We have James Madison and Alexander Hamilton discuss the writing of the Federalist Papers.”

At the Governor’s Palace, a large wreath adorned the entryway arch, and candles were set behind every window to cast a warm, welcoming glow over the palace green. Inside, preparations for the Christmas Ball were well underway, and the whole palace was alive with activity. As we walked from vast room to room, we discovered that the Christmas season was also wedding season.

However, a visit to the tailor informed me that I was woefully underdressed for any kind of wedding or Christmas Ball.

“Who’s your designer, then?” the tailor in the shop on Duke of Gloucester street asked me, raising his eyebrows at my choice of attire: blue jeans and a sweater.

“A tailor was equivalent to a modern day hairdresser,” he told me as he sat cross-legged on a bench, stitching together a piece

RIGHT The Governor’s Palace, where an annual Christmas ball is hosted.

of fabric. “Once you found one you liked, you never left.” And just like that, history was made relevant again to me in a way it hadn’t been a moment before.

Magic for Everyone

I visited Colonial Williamsburg for the first time the December after I graduated from college, and I remember being completely enchanted by sounds and smells. From the fifers and drummers marching down the street in uniform, to the handmade wreaths that hang in the doorways of colo

nial homes, garnished with oranges, pineapple, cinnamon sticks, and pine, Williamsburg seemed to com pletely envelop my senses. I was fascinated by this little town from the 18th century and the way it still seemed more alive than ever.

Several years later, we returned to Williamsburg with our 1-yearold daughter in tow, and she seemed equally mesmerized. She was an enthusiastic partaker of R. Charleton’s Coffeehouse’s hot choc olate, and as we stood wrapped in coats on the Palace Green to watch the Grand Illumination, she said

her first word as the interpreters walked by holding torches: “Hot.”

I have long marveled and won dered at this town’s ability to truly create an experience for everyone: children, adults, history lovers, and novices alike. How does the nation’s largest living history museum make the past come alive in such a con sistent and cohesive way from the moment guests walk through the visitor center’s doors?

A Historic Site With a Heartbeat

The museum consists of more than 300 acres, featuring iconic buildings

like the Raleigh Tavern, the Wythe House, the Governor’s Palace, and the Capitol, which was the meeting place of the House of Burgesses. Williamsburg, originally estab lished in the late 1600s, was one of the country’s first planned cities. Restoration of the city has involved extensive research and is continuing to evolve.

“We are constantly learning about this community,” said Ryalls. “This summer, we had three or four archeological digs happen ing across the campus.” Recently,

Colonial Williamsburg partnered with the First Baptist Church of Williamsburg to locate and exca vate the remains of the church’s original site on Nassau street.

The church was one of the ear liest African American congrega tions. In August, they began exca vating three burials, and they are currently knee deep on a journey to discover more about who these people were and the lives they lived.

“This is what sets Colonial Williamsburg apart from other institutions,” said Ryalls. “We are not just one building. We are an entire community. And we want to recreate that community: the spirit of that community.”

To do this, the museum hires

LEFT A Christmas feast is prepared.

BELOW The shoemaker’s shop in Colonial Williamsburg.

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The people and the historic sites are not composites. They are based on real people from a historic record, in real places that have been recreated to scale and with full integrity.

On the Cover

Photo: Johnny Shryock

Pictured: Steve Case

2 | Ron and Patty Thomas/E+/ Getty Images

6 | Bird of Bliss for American Essence

8 | Public domain

10 | Fei Meng for American Essence

11–15 | Courtesy of George V. Caylor

16 | Johnny Shryock

18–21 | Courtesy of Revolution

22 | Johnny Shryock

24–25 | Courtesy of Dana Mitzner Leman and Talia Leman

26–29 | Courtesy of Jenni Harris

32–33 | Courtesy of Earl W. Stafford

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36–37 | Background: Mia Stendal, Tyler Stableford/ Shutterstock

Left page: Kārlis Dambrāns (CC BY 2.0, CreativeCommons. org/licenses/by/2.0), Public domain

Right page: OlegRi/ Shutterstock, Public domain, Cjp24 (CC BY-SA 3.0, CreativeCommons.org/ licenses/by-sa/3.0), Tyler Stableford/Stone/Getty Images

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NORAD operation center: Courtesy of NORAD Others: tsuneomp, Andrius_ Saz, 1TwoThree/Shutterstock

68 | IMDB

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81–82 | Matthew Septimus 84–85 | Tatsiana Moon for American Essence

86–87 | Courtesy of Greg Clark

89 | Jerry McCoy/The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation

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91 | Samira Bouaou for American Essence

92 | Top: Samira Bouaou for American Essence

Bottom: James Kirkikis/ Shutterstock

93 | Tom Green/The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation 96 | Deck of cards: Artskrin/ Shutterstock Others: Rawpixel

Answer Key

1. True. During the American Revolution, German officer Friedrich Riedesel hosted a party in Quebec with Hessian and British soldiers in attendance. The Germans supplied the fir tree lit with candles, and the British placed a plum pudding under it as part of their own custom.

2. True. According to a popular legend, a 17th-century German choirmaster handed out sugar sticks to his young singers during a Christmas service as a way to keep them quiet when they were not singing. The white stripes represent Jesus’s sinless life, the red his sacrificial blood.

3. True. 2021 became the eighth consecutive year that the channel earned top honors as the most-watched entertainment cable network for women over 18 years old.

4. False. It was the Coca-Cola Company that played this role. In 1931, artist Haddon Sundblom was com missioned to paint Santa for the company’s Christmas ads. He drew on Clement C. Moore’s descriptions from the poem “A Visit from St. Nicholas” to portray him as a large, jolly man with rosy cheeks, a white beard, and twinkling eyes. Before this, Santa had been variously imagined as terrifying, elvish, or tall and skinny.

5. White Christmas. This version of Irving Berlin’s song has sold an estimated 50 million copies through out the world.

6. Yule. The trunk comprising this log had to be large enough to feed the fire through the Twelve Days of Christmas.

you to share about your family roots; the lessons passed down from generation to generation; and

7. Eggnog. The term first appeared in a poem by the clergyman Jonathan Boucher:

Fog-drams i’ th’ morn, or (better still) egg-nogg, At night hot-suppings, and at mid-day, grogg, My palate can regale…

8. D. Originally a motet composed in Latin, “Jesus Refulsit Omnium” dates to the 4th century. The others on this list are also old, but date to the later Middle Ages.

9. B. The geese and swans occur in the middle of the sequence, meaning that the “true love” in the song would have to give six geese seven times (making 42) and seven swans six times (also 42), bringing the total number of these gifts to a prohibitively expensive 84. This song seems to have originated as a memory game played by families at holiday parties.

10. C. According to one theory, the milk-and-cookies tradition originated during the Great Depression. In a time of hardship, it was a way for parents to teach their children the virtue of gratitude. Another theory is that Dutch children would leave food and drink for St. Nicholas on his feast day. Regardless, Moore’s poem does not mention the practice.

‘Tis the Season

WRITTEN BY Jennifer Tseng

 Stockings

According to one retelling, the tradition of hanging stockings stems from a story about St. Nicholas. There was a poor man who didn’t have enough money to pay for his three daugh ters’ dowries, so St. Nick dropped a bag of gold down the chimney, which landed in their stock ings that were left there to dry.

 Mistletoe

The custom of stealing a Christmas kiss under the mistle toe has its clearest connection with Norse mythology, in which Frigg, the goddess of love, promised to kiss any creature that passed beneath the evergreen sprig after it was used to revive her son, Baldur, from the dead.

 Christmas and War

During World War II, The United States Playing Card Com pany joined forces with American and British intelligence agencies to create a very special deck of cards. They distributed them as Christmas gifts, but they also helped Allied prisoners of war escape from German POW camps. When wet, individual cards peeled apart to reveal maps of escape routes.

 Christmas Trees

The Rockefeller Center Christmas tree started small. Construction workers first placed a small, undecorat ed tree while working there in 1931. Two years later, another tree appeared in its place, this time draped in lights. It just kept getting bigger every year.

 Holiday Shopping

American consumers said they spend an aver age of about $1,000 on gifts, according to the National Retail Federation’s most recent data— although individual spending can really range.

How our beloved Christmas traditions came to be

CHINA BEFORE COMMUNISM

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“ I encourage everyone to see and all of us to learn from.”