Above: Modern day mummers. Top middle: Art Braitman/Flickr; others, Steve Wassell/Flickr Colonial Delaware, in the early 18th century, found itself at odds with mumming, an ancient tradition imported from England. What had once been a quaint custom in the Old World became such a public scandal in the New that authorities arrested mummers even in…
Above: A Prime Hook cluster of mistletoe. Photo Kerry Wixsted/Flickr Each Delaware holiday season, from the late 1800s through the early 1900s, mistletoe sprigs would appear statewide in markets and fruit stands, ready to be hung for cheerful décor and stolen kisses. However, before holiday revelers could display these delicate sprigs, seasonal workers had to painstakingly harvest…
Popular culture often portrays the holiday season as a time of joy, goodwill, and festivities. However, the harsh reality is that crime and mischief have always been a part of Christmas in Delaware, with incidents ranging from political power plays and unruly schoolboys’ antics to racially tinged acts of theft. Let’s explore three notable such…
Pomegranate, Orange Slices, Cinnamon Sticks in wreath from Christ Church, Christiana Hundred / Facebook Colonial Delaware’s Christmas traditions bear the unmistakable imprint of Anglicanism (the Church of England). However, this denomination never established the stronghold in Delaware that it enjoyed in neighboring Maryland and Virginia. Anglican congregations in the United States faced a challenge after…
