RAGAMUFFIN DAY

By Mary Davis

Ragamuffin Day was a sort of a Halloween on Thanksgiving in New York City.

Ragamuffin Day sources say they don’t know when this tradition started and others say it started around 1870, a few years after President Lincoln declared Thanksgiving a national holiday, and went through WWII.

On Thanksgiving, New York City children would dress up in ragged clothes and go around begging pedestrian. It was a sort of parade. Others went door to door. Some ragamuffins painted their faces while other donned masks, and so, Ragamuffins were also often known as Maskers.

Apparently at this time, both begging and masquerading were technically forbidden, but that didn’t stop the ragamuffins.

People would give these masquerading beggars pennies or a nickel or an apple or something like that. If bystanders didn’t give alms to the beggars, they became the victim of a practical joke. It could be a fishmonger’s horn blasted in their ear (Ouch!) or being hit over the head with a sock full of flour (Ouch again!) or something else. Sounds a lot like Trick-or-Treat.

Some people, who the ragamuffins came to, would put pennies on their fire so they would be hot when they threw them down from their windows. This seems mean to me, but I imagine it didn’t take long for the pennies to cool off. This New York City tradition that had started out as good humored fun eventually turned into a nuisance.

This from The Hattiesburg News, Hattiesburg, Miss., November 24, 1908.

In the 1920s, the thousands of Ragamuffins carousing around the streets got competition for the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade.

With the dawn of the Great Depression, throwing red-hot pennies from windows or giving them to every ragamuffin beggar in the street became too precious to part with.

In 1930, the New York school superintendent issued an edict to have Ragamuffin Day stop. For the most part it did but remained in areas like the Bronx, Flatbush, Greenpoint, and other places where the subway ended. 

By the late 1930, several organization hosted Thanksgiving parades to discourage ragamuffins.

As Halloween became more popular during the Great Depression, Ragamuffin Day became less popular but did continue into the 1940s. The last reported Ragamuffin parade was in 1956. However, starting in the 1970s, some communities have taken up the tradition again to have ragamuffin parades.

Happy Thanksgiving!

THIMBLES AND THREADS: 4 Love Stories Are Quilted Into Broken Lives
When four women put needle and thread to fabric, will their talents lead to love?

Click HERE to order.

“Bygones” Texas, 1884
Drawn to the new orphan boy in town, Tilly Rockford soon became the unfortunate victim of a lot of Orion Dunbar’s mischievous deeds in school. Can Tilly figure out how to truly forgive the one who made her childhood unbearable? Can this deviant orphan-train boy turned man make up for the misdeeds of his youth and win Tilly’s heart before another man steals her away?

MARY DAVIS s a bestselling, award-winning novelist of over two dozen

titles in both historical and contemporary themes. Her 2018 titles include; "Holly and Ivy" in A Bouquet of Brides Collection (January), Courting Her Amish Heart (March), The Widow’s Plight (July), Courting Her Secret Heart (September), “Zola’s Cross-Country Adventure” in The MISSAdventure Brides Collection (December), and Courting Her Prodigal Heart (January 2019). Coming in 2019, The Daughter's Predicament (May) and "Bygones" in Thimbles and Threads (July). She is a member of ACFW and active in critique groups. Mary lives in the Pacific Northwest with her husband of over thirty-four years and two cats. She has three adult children and two incredibly adorable grandchildren. Find her online at:

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Be a Tree Fad of the 1900's

Whoever said history was boring, must not have researched very long. I can't tell you how many times I have come across some of the most interesting, random and comical things while researching for a story or article. Since holiday decorating is now in full swing, I thought I'd share one of my favorites.

Christmas decorations haven't always been the way they are today. So when I was writing a Christmas story set in the early 1900's, I had to do a little bit of research and see what kinds of decorations were popular at that time period. It was just during the emergence of Christmas lights, so those were yet sparse. But I did run across one method of Christmas decorating that took me completely off guard.

Most of us are familiar with the couture and fashions of the holiday season. From the simple and elegant black dress, to the ugly sweaters, to those new holiday outfits that we love to shop for, fashion has been as much a part of Christmas as turkey and eggnog. However, some of these fashions are more...shall we say...interesting, than others.

It seems that during this Edwardian, Titanic era, folks had a fascination with dressing up in Christmas tree costumes. And some of the costumes are very authentic, if nothing else.The Christmas tree during this era had a lot of tinsel and a lot of homemade ornaments. The days of pretty, uniform, professional looking ornaments was not yet upon us, and only businesses or the more astute citizens would have lights on their trees. So perhaps the people were seeking a way to make the Christmas tree more exciting and full of life. What better way to do that than to actually BE a Christmas tree?!

While I was unable to find any particular reason or history behind this fad, I did find numerous pictures. From children, to full grown women, it seems that people of all ages joined in on the idea.

My best guess is this fad was much like the "ugly sweater" contests of today. The embarrassment and oddness of the costumes became part of the game, and part of what made it "cool" and festive.

Photos source: vintag.es.com

What do you think...would you dress up as a Christmas Tree for your next holiday party?

*****

Two-time winner of the Christian Indie Award for historical fiction, Amber Schamel writes riveting stories that bring HIStory to life. She has a passion for travel, history, books and her Savior. This combination results in what her readers call "historical fiction at its finest".  She lives in Colorado and spends half her time volunteering in the Ozarks. Check out Solve by Christmas on Amazon for a great holiday read.

 

Reenactment Vs. Living History...and the Renaissance Faire?

Old West Reenactment Camp

By Alanna Radle Rodriguez


Last month, Linore Rose Burkard did a blog on Ye Old Renaissance Faire, and it got me to thinking. What is the difference between a reenactment and living history? And where does the Medieval/Renaissance faire fall?


We have all tried to relive the past in different forms and fashion: The old kids’ game Cowboys and Indians, school Thanksgiving plays, movies and TV series, books, paintings, reenactments, museums and living history. Here in the State of Oklahoma, during the third or fourth grade, some students get to reenact the state’s land run. But why couldn’t this school “land run” be called living history? The terms reenactment and living history are very similar and are sometimes used interchangeably. Most may say there isn’t a difference, but to the historians, there is a difference. 

Hayes, Ohio 2015 Civil War Reenactment

A reenactment is an educational or theatrical performance that portrays a past event or times past, quite often following a script. In the United States, Civil War reenactments are everywhere. Living history is generally a recreation of living conditions and historical tools, usually a presentation that generally do not follow a planned script. Re-enactors may give you the sense of stepping onto a movie set, but living historians can give you a sense of stepping back in time. Some would say reenacting got its start in the Roman Coliseum. While many places have historical content and context, most reenactments and living history events are hosted by, or completely managed by, a museum or historical society. In many cases, living historians working directly with a museum or historical society. Most specialize in a specific time period and region, typically their own town and state. 

Reenactment of the Roman Legion XV "Apollinaris", taking place in Austria-Wikipedia

Today, people gather to celebrate Medieval or Renaissance times across the globe. Of course, these assemblies are aptly called Medieval or Renaissance Faires. This is where the line can blur between reenactment and living history. Generally, a faire is a celebratory gathering—a festival. You usually have groups that frequent these faires. The Society of Creative Anachronism (SCA) is a worldwide organization that provides reenactment encampments and sometimes living history. But most who visit a faire consider it a chance to dress up like a princess, Robin Hood, or a pirate. For others, it’s a perfect cosplay opportunity. A contraction of the two words “costume and play,” cosplay is the practice of dressing up like your favorite fictional character or even a different you from an alternate universe. While these “reenactors” stay in their cosplay character during an event, most living historians are just that. Historians. They have researched and confirmed their material, the process, the very way of life of their ancestors or the people they portray. Simply put, while living historians are playing a role in the overall scheme of an event or museum, they are still first and foremost, a student of history. 

Video Cosplayer-google search

Interesting Cosplay: "Snowba Fett" Mix between Snow White and Bobba Fett from Star Wars

To see the living historian at work is to take a step back to a different time and sometimes a different place. Did you know that when you talk to a living historian in garb, you are talking not only to an artisan, but an artist? You are. They make it their goal to allow for the full experience. Although you get to see the times portrayed own troubles and hardships, it is, for most people, an excellent way to contrast the complexities and troubles of the current day with a “simpler” time. If you haven’t had the chance to take a trip to either a cultural center or a living history museum, it would be an experience worth the having. 

Viking re-enactors at the Battle of Clontarf millennium commeration, Saint Anne's Park, Dublin-by Hibernian, Wikipedia

My husband and I are both re-enactors and living historians. When we volunteer at the 1889 Territorial Schoolhouse in Edmond, Oklahoma, we come alive, not only for the adults who come in but for the children too. It is so fun to ask children what they think I, as the schoolmarm, would use to heat my schoolhouse. “Wood!” they enthusiastically reply. At that time, Edmond was tall prairie grassland. There were no trees! I show them a picture of historic Edmond and ask them what’s missing. When they tell me a popular fast-food restaurant directly across the street, I can’t help but laugh. I tell them trees are missing! Early settlers would use cow chips to fuel the fire! “If you were in my classroom, once in a while it would be your responsibility to bring fuel for the stove for a week,” I tell them. Of course, I get a good, “EEEEEEEWWWWWW!!!!” and I laugh with the parents. 

Husband and I at the Schoolhouse

We love being asked questions as living historians! “Is that a real stove?” Yes, it is. This was our heater when we didn’t have electricity. “Where’s your smart board?” Well, see the big black board behind my desk? That’s our smart board. You have to write on it with chalk. “Where are your Ipads?” Slates were our Ipads. “Did you make your skirt?” Yes, I did. In living history situations real firearms are allowed, my husband is always asked, “Is that gun real? Can you use that knife? Why is your holster so high up?” My favorite one he gets asked a lot is, “Are you a REAL cowboy?” I can’t help but smile. Yes, my computer IT husband is a real cowboy. 

Part of my crew. Medieval Fair in Norman, OK 2011

So where do the Medieval/Renaissance Faires fit? Well, it depends on the faire. In Oklahoma, there are two famous faires: The Medieval Faire in Norman and The Renaissance Faire in Muskogee, and there are differences even between the two! The Medieval Faire does have the historical jousting put on by the SCA, but it has more of a modern market. The Renaissance Faire is to preserve the culture, fashion, goods and celebrations. While there are reenactments at most, if not all faires, re-enactors, living historians, and cosplayers all are intermingled at the faire!

Tinker Bell Cosplay

Born and raised in Edmond, Oklahoma, Alanna Radle Rodriguez is the great-great granddaughter of one of the first pioneers to settle in Indian Territory. Alanna loves the history of the state and relishes in volunteering at the 1889 Territorial Schoolhouse in Edmond. Her first published story, part of a collaborative novella titled Legacy Letters, came out September 2016. Alanna lives with her husband and parents in the Edmond area. She is currently working on a historical fiction series that takes place in pre-statehood Waterloo, Oklahoma.

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