Christmases Past: 1870s - 1900s

During the 1870s, Christmas in Waterbury began to look more like it does today than it had in earlier decades (see previous post). Christmas trees were becoming a standard feature, as were wreaths and poinsettias. Merchants offered countless options for gifts, grocers sold produce from warmer climates, and holiday entertainments ranged from the spiritual to the bawdy.

Waterbury's population boomed during the late 1800s, with thousands of people moving here to work in the factories. From 1870 to 1900, Waterbury's population grew from 13,148 to 51,139. It reached 73,141 in 1910.

Waterbury's growth was directly connected to the growth of industry and transportation throughout the country. This was an era of expansion, innovation, and colonization.

The first Christmas cards in the United States were introduced in 1874 by Louis Prang & Co. The advent of chromolithographic printing made the production of colorful cards affordable for the masses.

Thomas Nast's iconic illustration of Merry Old Santa Claus, carrying an armload of toys, appeared in Harper's Weekly magazine on January 1, 1881.

Thomas Nast, Merry Old Santa Claus, 1881

Christmases Past: 1840s - 1860s

Christmas is a time of nostalgia, with people reflecting on their happy memories from childhood, but the older history is just as interesting. Many of the traditions we associate with Christmas were adopted during the 1800s.

Washington Irving published a satirical story about St. Nicholas in 1809, writing "lo! the good St. Nicholas came riding over the tops of the trees, in that self-same wagon wherein he brings his yearly presents to children. ... And he lit his pipe by the fire, and sat himself down and smoked; and as he smoked the smoke from his pipe ascended into the air, and spread like a cloud overhead." (Washington Irving’s Works: Knickerbocker’s history of New York, 1895 edition, p. 181-182)

An illustrated poem about "Old Santeclaus" was published in New York in 1821, the first known publication to depict Santa's sleigh and reindeer.

The Children's friend. Number III. A New-Year's present, to the little ones from five to twelve, 1821
Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library, Yale University / Wikimedia Commons

Taverns, Beer, and Civil Rights

I recently purchased a Waterbury token on a whim while looking for information about a Pete’s Tavern featured in a series of articles in 1949 (more on that below). I had no way of knowing whether the Pete’s Tavern on the token was the same Pete’s Tavern in the newspaper articles, but I impulsively placed a bid on eBay and wound up being the only bidder.

Pete's Tavern Token, front and back

Now saddled with a Pete’s Tavern token, I set about researching tokens in an effort to learn when it was made, trying to see whether or not the token was connected to the Pete's Tavern I had read about in the newspaper articles from 1949.

The available material about merchant tokens was entirely unhelpful, as it was all too generalized. From what I read, my token could have been produced anytime between the 1880s and the 1940s.

Next, I tried skimming the Waterbury City Directories for Pete’s Tavern. Here’s where things started to get interesting.

Rowhome Rehab

We've been trying to remodel our Scovill Row Home for over a year now, hitting endless obstacles from contractors who want nothing to do with us. The worst was Giordano Cabinets. The rep who came to our house took one look at the neighborhood (which is predominantly African American and Hispanic) and asked if his crew would be safe here, then gave us an estimate of $62,000 for cabinets and countertops for a 19 square foot kitchen. I can only assume that the estimate was excessively high because they don't want the job.

The Spires of St. Anne's

As reported in the Republican-American on May 2, the iconic spires of St. Anne's Church will be removed by All Saints Parish this summer. The job will cost the parish an estimated $881,255. The plan is to remove the Vermont blue marble blocks carefully, so that they can be used to someday restore the spires if enough money can be raised. The dome of the church is also in need of repairs; parishioners have told me there is water coming in through the dome windows.

The twin spires of St. Anne in 2006

This is not the first time that stonework has fallen from the building. Major repairs were done in the 1980s and the 2000s, but the problems have continued.

I have, frankly, had trouble tracing all of the repairs done to the towers, as very little information is available, and what I can find seems contradictory in places. A newspaper article in 2004 stated that $329,000 had just been spent to repair the towers and dome, but in 2006 there was a chunk of stonework missing from the west tower. Another newspaper article, from 2006, stated that the parish had raised nearly $2 million for repairs to the building. When I curated an exhibit about Waterbury architecture in 2009, repairs to the spires and dome had just wrapped up the previous year, but in 2011, the parish was once again talking about raising money to repair the spires.

Waterbury and the Green Book

Thanks to the Oscar awards, the movie Green Book has been getting a lot of attention. There are plenty of good resources for learning more about the historical Green Book -- the New York Public Library has a good online resource, and there have been several short articles and videos looking into some of the Green Book locations. There is also a documentary on the Smithsonian Channel.

The Negro Motorist Green Book, 1939
Collection of The New York Public Library

Much of the focus has been on the southern states covered by the Green Book, but travel through the northern states was also potentially dangerous during the mid-20th century. Having a guide to hotels and tourist homes for African Americans in Connecticut made travel much easier and safer.

Between 1938 and 1950, the only Waterbury locations in the Green Book were in the North Square neighborhood (with the exception of an address on Bridge Street near the heavily Irish Abrigador neighborhood). Beginning in 1950, the Elton Hotel was listed in the Green Book. In 1961, the Putt Meadow Motor Court on Meriden Road was added.

Winter is the Pits

One of Waterbury's great grassroots groups, Spirit of Waterbury, put together a winter festival at Hamilton Park this afternoon, the second in their series of Hidden Spaces, Secret Places events. The weather was more mud season than snow season, but everyone still had a good time. An estimated 1,000 people attended the event, which included a small bonfire, several pit fires, s'mores, chili, soups, hot chocolate, food trucks, and a mobile pub.

A Brief History of Waterbury's Black Barber Shops

Black barber shops have been an important center of African American communities since the 1800s. Black barbers were among the first African American entrepreneurs to build their businesses in Waterbury. The city's first black-owned barber shop opened in 1846, catering to a primarily white clientele. During the early 1900s, Waterbury’s African American community grew large enough to support a black barber shop dedicated to that community, located in the North Square neighborhood.

Lost Cats

Over the weekend, we took in a stray female cat and we are now trying to find its owners.

If your cat or dog is missing, be sure to contact rescue shelters and look through the postings of animals for adoption, and keep looking for a few months. Don't just look at listings of "found cats," because not everyone who finds a cat and adopts it out will post there.