Snowballs for All

 by Anita Mae Draper

Postcard from California postmarked St. George, Brant, (Ontario) May 18, 1908. Public Domain, Courtesy of South Dumfries Historical Society

The month of March is known for winter making a last blustery stand before its power wanes and the warming sun melts snow. This provides the perfect temperature for making sticky snowballs. The postcard featured above was sent from Los Angeles, California on May 13, 1908 to St. George, Ontario. The reverse starts off by saying that the sender is leaving California with regret and will be home soon by way of Chicago. Although the snow should be gone by May, one never knows when it comes to our weather.

Children Snowballing Near Observatory, St. Louis (Shaw's) Botanical Garden, [Mo.] c1905. Public Domain

This 1905 stereograph taken at the St Louis Botanical Garden in Missouri shows a snowball exchange between children on the site of the observatory. I had thought the person with an armload of snowballs might have been an adult, but considering the year, the short length of her outfit appears to negate that guess.

Did you know that many communities have bylaws concerning the throwing of snowballs? It is usually necessitated and enforced when the act hurts others, whether children or adults. The article from the Newmarket Era shows a good example of a bylaw to stop bullying. If only it was that easy the rest of the year.

Imperial Oil's office staff snowball fight, Burrard Inlet, Vancouver, BC. 1915-1916.  Courtesy Glenbow Archives, Alberta

An interesting photograph from 1915-1916 found at the Glenbow Archives in Alberta shows a snowball fight at noon between office staff members at Imperial Oil's refinery (Ioco), Burrard Inlet, Vancouver, British Columbia. The body language in this candid shot seems to imply the male is threatening to throw the snowballs, although we don't know if he completed the action. 

Hans Dahl -  Snowball fight and snowman, by 1937. Public Domain

On the other hand, the women in this Hans Dahl painting have chosen to direct their snowballs at a snowman. Are they aiming for his hat, face, or the club-like stick in his hands? 

A Republican-Democratic snow battle at the Capitol. Page boys. December 14, 1923. Public Domain

Does it seem natural to anyone else that a snowball fight would occur between Republican and Democratic page boys at the Capitol? This became an annual snow battle on the Capitol grounds until at least 1930, as long as good snowball making material was available.

Snow scenes. Snowballing on Jaffa Road. January 1942. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division

Although Jerusalem isn't known for its snowy scenes, the city does experience it every three or four years in varying amounts. Back in 1942, an overnight snowfall brought the community, including soldiers, out along the Jaffa Road to try their hand at target practice. 

Have you ever been hit by a snowball? How did you respond?

This closes my series on snowball throwing, an activity to be enjoyed for all if done responsibly. Follow the links for other posts in this series:

Jan 5, 2021: Snowballs Go Way Back

Feb 5, 2021: Snowball Fights in War and Play

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Anita Mae Draper served a 20-year term working on air bases in the communication trade of the Canadian Armed Forces before retiring to the open skies of the prairies. She uses her experience and love of history to pepper her stories of yesteryear's romance with realism as well as faith. Anita Mae Draper's published stories appear in Barbour Publishing, WhiteFire Publishing, and Guideposts Books. Readers can enrich their story experience with visual references by checking out Anita's Pinterest boards. All links available on her website at www.anitamaedraper.com 

Snowballs Go Way Back

by Anita Mae Draper

Snowball Fight, Anonymous (Flemish), circa 1510. Public Domain, courtesy of The Walters Art Museum, Wikimedia

A snowball can be classified as the simplest, most economical toy for all ages. It's free. It's usually fun. It's good exercise for muscles you didn't know you had, and when thrown at the wrong target, the evidence often disappears. The above image by an unknown Flemish artist is from the December page in a Book of Hours. Created on parchment using ink and paint, the complete illuminated page is a beautiful illustration of 1510 artwork, yet it's the snowball fight I want to explore. Are they only throwing snowballs at each other, or is the middle person aiming to try the man leading a donkey in the background?

One hundred years earlier, Venceslao Boemo, an Italian artist, created a fresco of a snowball fight at the base of the Buonconsiglio Castle in Trento, northern Italy. Unlike the first image, the participants in this painting appear to be of higher birth, based on their garments and yet they seem to be enjoying the sport just as much. 

Snowball Fight at Buonconsiglio Castle, Trento, Italy, c1400. Public Domain, Wikimedia

Cornelis Dusart (1660-1704) was a Dutch painter, draftsman, and printmaker. He was born and died in Haarlem, Netherlands, and used colored chalks and watercolor for his remarkable drawings of peasants. His work of a peasant pair throwing snowballs is thought to have been published on the March page of an Amsterdam calendar between 1680 and 1690.

Month of March, by Cornelis Dusant, c1680-1690. Public Domain, Wikimedia

Of course, the throwing of snowballs made great imagery for satirical drawings in newspapers and periodicals, such as this drawing published by Laurie & Whittle, London, England in 1794. The accompanying description reads, "Two well-dressed young women (left) stand behind a tree with snow-balls to pelt a thin and elderly man in old-fashioned dress (right) who walks in profile to the right, clenching his fist and holding up his stick. He is plastered with patches of snow. A third young woman kneels behind the others, making a snowball. Three others (right) are amused."

Snowballs, published 12th May 1794, by Laurie & Whittle, London. Creative commons, courtesy of the British Museum.

Snowball fights are a good way for a novelist to ramp up, or relieve tension between the hero and heroine. Do you know of any Regency or Victorian romance novels, novellas or short stories that use a well-thrown snowball to gain attention or have some fun? I know that Mary Balogh has included a snowball scene in her novel, Someone to Trust. Who knows another one?

Update: Thanks to Linda Shenton Matchett, another HHH blogger, for sharing that she has a snowball fight between the male and female protagonists in her WWII novellette, A Doctor in the House. 

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Anita Mae Draper served a 20-year term working on air bases in the communication trade of the Canadian Armed Forces before retiring to the open skies of the prairies. She uses her experience and love of history to pepper her stories of yesteryear's romance with realism and faith. Anita Mae Draper's published stories appear in Barbour Publishing, WhiteFire Publishing, and Guideposts Books. Readers can enrich their story experience with visual references by checking out Anita's Pinterest boards. All links available on her website at www.anitamaedraper.com

Christmas on the Prairies in the 1860s-1880s – by Donna Schlachter

 

Christmas, 1876

Many of the images we conjure regarding Christmas have been around for a long time, including Christmas trees, Christmas pudding, fruitcake, and Santa Claus. Some are strictly American in origin, including the notion of Santa as a jolly, old elf. Most were brought to this country by immigrants from primarily Europe, including Germany, England, and France.

Cattle in snow storm

 

And while much of the more civilized parts of America were enjoying many of these traditions, life was much harder on the prairies, where a single winter storm or a poor crop due to insects or drought could mean the difference between life and death.

Farming and ranching still require attention to fields and stock every single day of the year, leaving no room for the week-long festivities we often enjoy today. Neglecting chores could mean no food tomorrow—or even today.

Plenty of food, with enough to share

Still, many families, particularly those with children, endeavored to set apart the day and celebrate Jesus’ birth. Laura Ingalls Wilder, who famously catalogued life on the prairies in her series, Little House on the Prairie, says that her mother cooked all day long, baking bread, beans, and pies.

In the forts, soldiers caroled while venison roasted over an open hearth. Depending on their country of origin, a family might bring in a Christmas tree, although perhaps they’d have hung it by the trunk from a beam. Children gathered at the kitchen table to make homemade decorations, including miniature corn husk dolls or yarn angels. If there was a little extra cookie dough available, they cut out gingerbread men and punched a hole in the raw dough, stringing a piece of ribbon or yarn through after it was baked before hanging it on the tree.

Preserved fruit and vegetables were enjoyed, with the women often beginning the process weeks in advance.

Yarn doll

 

Gifts were simple, usually homemade, and most often something the person needed. Knitted and sewn items such as caps, mitts, and scarves were favorites, as well as occasionally socks or a sweater. Knit or carved toys for the little ones were also enjoyed, and if the family enjoyed a good year financially, perhaps a few candies, fresh fruit, or a small gift from the mercantile in town would appear in their stockings, which were hung on Christmas Eve, often after church service or a time of family singing in their own home.

Carved toys

 

Following is a recipe used by Mrs. Isabel Beeton, a native of England:

Victoria Sandwiches

4 eggs (weigh them in their shells)

Caster sugar, equal to the weight of the eggs

Butter, equal to the weight of the eggs

Flour, equal to the weight of the eggs

¼ teaspoon salt

Jam or marmalade, of any kind

Cream the butter for about five minutes then add the sugar and beat for about two-three minutes. Add the eggs and beat for three minutes. Add the flour and salt and beat for an additional five minutes.

Butter a 9”x9” baking tin and pour in the batter. Bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes. Use a toothpick to test for doneness. Allow to cool on a cake rack.

Cut the cake in half and spread the jam over the bottom of the cake. Place the other half of the cake on top and gently press the pieces together. Cut them into long finger pieces. Pile them in crossbars on a glass dish and serve.

***

Mrs. Beeton’s Cookery and Household Management, Isabella Beeton,
1874, London.

 

However you celebrate your Christmas this year, despite the changing world we live in and restrictions on numbers permitted in a group, I pray you’ll find the true meaning and joy of the season—Jesus becoming Emmanuel, God with us—and carry that with you all year through.

 

 

Resources:

https://truewestmagazine.com/christmas-on-the-frontier/

https://www.legendsofamerica.com/we-christmas/

 

 

About Donna:

Donna lives in Denver with husband Patrick. As a hybrid author, she writes historical suspense under her own name, and contemporary suspense under her alter ego of Leeann Betts, and they have been published more than 30 times in novellas, full-length novels, devotional books, and books on the writing craft. She is a member of American Christian Fiction Writers, Writers on the Rock, Sisters In Crime, Pikes Peak Writers, and Christian Authors Network; facilitates a critique group; and teaches writing classes online and in person. Donna also ghostwrites, edits, and judges in writing contests. She loves history and research, and travels extensively for both. Donna is represented by Terrie Wolf of AKA Literary Management.

 

Where to find me online:

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Snow People Pics of the Past

By Anita Mae Draper

Winter, Penrhyn Stanlaws, artist, 1907. LOC Prints and Photographs Division

This 1907 art poster shows a style of snowman with legs instead of a wide base. The artist, Penrhyn Stanlaws, has created a scene with a woman in a fashionable outfit with her hands in a hand muffler and standing beside what appears to be a male snowman. Unfortunately, the publisher isn't identified.

A snowman is not just an iconic image to be sung about and enjoyed during the holidays if you are someone who lives in a snow belt. Anyone who has ever made a snowman, dreamed of making one, or watched a movie featuring a snowman knows that snowmen keep us snow-thumpers sane through the winter months. First, you need a certain type of snow that is moist enough to hold the snow together and that means around freezing point with lots of moisture in the air. Second, the weather that brings the perfect snow to make a snowman is the same type of weather that melts snow. Hence, seeing a snowman brings hope of a thaw, yet it also brings the inevitability of something wonderful passing.

Since snowmen are also found as snow women and snow people, I wanted to see what they looked like in the past. I was pleased to discover that circa 1853, Welsh photographer Mary Dillwyn (1816-1908) took the first known photograph of a snowman. Although the original is held in The National Library of Wales, it is displayed on the their Flickr site, as well as on Wikipedia.

The earliest known photograph of a snowman, Mary Dillwyn, photographer c.1853. Public domain

I find it fascinating that a c1853 image shows such detail in the clothing, never mind the fact that someone thought that playing in the snow was worthy of a photograph. (If I may inject a modern term, Go Mary!) 

Wikipedia also shows a 1511 woodcut with a wonderful scene of people dancing around a snowman, with more snowmen in the background. 

People are dancing around a snowman, woodcut by Holzschnitt von Schneemann, 1511. Wikipedia, public domain

In 1867, a book translated as, The World is Small: Twelve Pictures from Children's Life. A family book, was written in German by the poet Emil Rittershaus with drawings created by Eduard Schulz. The drawing for Winter shows a large snowman surrounded by children. 

Illustration from The world in small: twelve pictures from children's life. A family book by Eduard Schulz with text by Emil Rittershaus, Flemming, Glogau 1867. Wikipedia, public domain

Can you tell if the snowman in the above photo is a snow man or woman? Although it seems to have been made with the same style of two- or three-ball snowmen we often see today, it has the older style wide base. Could this be for stability, or is it because the person depicted is wearing a robe or skirt? 

The National Archives of The Netherlands Flickr photostream shows a delightful image taken on January 21, 1913, where the country's Queen Wilhelmina & Princess Juliana were created as "snowmen." 

The Dutch Queen Wilhelmina and Princess Juliana as snowmen. The Netherlands, 21 January, 1913. National Archives of The Netherlands Flickr photostream, public domain

The features are outstanding, but were the snow people of the Dutch royal family a true likeness? A bit of research from the Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division in Washington led me to a photograph of Queen Wilhelmina and Princess Juliana taken the following year, in 1914. What do you think?

Queen Wilhelmina and Princess Juliana, glass negative, 1914.  LOC public domain

In April 1924, American silent film actress Fritzi Ridgeway was photographed cuddling up to a snowman. The image doesn't say where the photo was taken, but Fritzi was born and raised in Montana and due to the proximity to the mountains I'm sure she could have found sticky snow in April if she wanted to make a snowman. It's interesting to note that the base of this snowman is also quite wide, and along with his cap appears to give the impression of a being a boat captain due to their wide stance on a lolling ship.

What it takes to melt a snowman this young lady has - Miss Fritzi Ridgeway, April 2, 1924. LOC public domain

My research led me to believe that the snowman's shape didn't change much until the sending and receiving of Christmas cards became a huge part of the holiday season. Postcards from the late 1800's onward show every type of snowman imaginable, much more than can be added here.

I'll close with a very modern 2018 cell phone photo taken by my daughter who is an English as a Second Language (ESL) teacher in South Korea. Snow in winter is as familiar to Jess as Christmas is in December, but not so much to the people in her current resident city. So when she awoke one morning to find a light dusting of snow rapidly melting, she raced to a sheltered spot and made a tiny snowman. My heart swelled as I thought of my daughter, halfway across the world, taking joy in something as simple as snow.

Snow is cold, wet, and miserable when you have to deal with it on a long-term basis, but it's also wonderful to play with and to create something that will make people smile. It's part of our natural cycle and most of us would rather live with it than give it up because we know there will come the day when temperatures rise and all snow people will melt away. 

The Welsh photographer, Mary Dillwyn, knew the importance of building a snowman when she took her 1853 photograph shown near the top of this post. Making a snowman is a great stress-relieving activity for the mind, body, and spirit. 

Have you had the chance to make a snowman? If you've never made one, what style would you make if you could? 

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Anita Mae Draper lives on the Canadian prairies where she uses her experience and love of history to enhance her stories of yesteryear's romance with realism and faith. Readers can enrich their story experience with visual references by checking Anita's Pinterest boards. All links available on her website at www.anitamaedraper.com

Historic New York Winters

Being a lifelong New York Yankee, (no not a baseball team player, but a bonafide citizen) has made me a lover of winter and that dreaded four letter word, S N O W. Perhaps part of that comes from my maiden name, Talvi, which means winter in the Finnish language. Whatever the reason, I always get a thrill when I hear a snowstorm is on the way. It stands to reason that winter has created some pretty amazing history in my home state. New York boasts historic blizzards, a century old winter festival, even one of the most photographed and toured Christmas/winter destinations in the world. 

The Great Blizzard holds infamy as the one of the worst, longest, and most deadly snowstorms on record, and spanned several Northeastern states. Between March 10 and 14, 1888 a powerful system carrying moisture moved up the east coast, meeting with an Arctic blast moving down from Canada. Heavy rains turned to a colossal snowstorm--one for the record books. New York saw the deepest snowfall levels, recorded in Troy and Saratoga, each measuring over 50 inches. The system, also called The Great White Hurricane, brought formidable winds. In New York City,  40-plus mile an hour sustained blowing, with gusts recorded at over 70 miles per hour, created drifts in places over 50 feet high, covering three story houses and virtually shutting the metropolis down for over a week. 

400 people lost their lives to this storm, over 200 in New York City alone. But it brought about much needed change at a time that defined technological advances and modernization. Elevated trains that had been paralyzed in the aftermath of the storm were thereafter designed to run underground where ice couldn't derail or snow piles impede. Gas, telephone, and telegraph lines knocked down in the storm took weeks to restore. With growing populations increasingly dependent on these utilities, their infrastructure went subterranean as well. 

A decade later, a happier story evolved at Saranac Lake in the Adirondacks. The longest running winter carnival on the east coast had its beginnings in this logging community where a tuberculosis clinic brought sufferers flocking to seek cure in the cool, pristine climate. Local winter activity enthusiasts formed the Pontiac Club, to celebrate the area's perfect setup for skiing, skating, snowshoeing, hockey, and sledding during the long winter months. In February of 1897 a one-day winter festival was held, with attendees decked out in formal wear. Subsequent carnivals commenced on odd years, their duration longer, and activities broadened to include the annual building of the Ice Palace and nomination of its Ice King and Queen, community fireworks, parades, sports activities and competitions, theater, and a button exchange. 

But perhaps New York's most famous winter scene, depicted in movies such as Elf and Home Alone 2, is the Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree and skating rink. The first Rockefeller Center tree was erected by construction workers building Rockefeller Center in 1931. It was a small and informal tree, decorated with simple Depression-era paper garlands and popcorn strings. Two years later, the official tradition kicked off, with a grand 50-foot tree resplendent with electric lights. On completion of Rockefeller Center, a skating rink adorned the plaza below the tree in 1936. 

Photo by Magda Ehlers from Pexels

Interesting trivia about the Rockefeller Center tree: 

• During WWII and after the attack on the World Trade Center, decorations featured patriotic colors and themes. In fact, durung the war three smaller trees stood in place of one large one, each festooned in red, white, or blue respectively. And because of mandatory blackouts, the trees held no lights from 1944-5.
• The tree lighting was first televised in 1951.
• 1971 the tree was first mulched and used for nature trails in upper Manhattan.
• eco-friendly LED lights were first used in 2007
• 2007 the tree lumber was first milled and donated to Habitat for Humanity.

❆❅❄❆ What are some of your most prominent winter memories? Maybe where you live, snow is a rare occurrence. Do you have a favorite movie or historic event that involves winter or snow scenes? Would love to hear about it!

Kathleen L. Maher has had an infatuation with books and fictional heroes ever since her preschool crush, Peter Rabbit. She had a novella in BARBOUR's 2018 Victorian Christmas Brides Collection, featuring her hometown of Elmira, New York. She won the 2012 ACFW Genesis contest for her Civil War story, which released this past summer under a new title The Abolitionist’s Daughter. Look for upcoming releases in 2019, including another Barbour collection, Lessons in Love, set to release in October. Kathleen shares an old farmhouse in upstate New York with her husband, children, and a small zoo of rescued animals.

Follow Kathleen on Facebook,  Twitter and  Amazon

Early photos of Children's Sleighs

Since I covered the sleigh as winter transportation in my post Sleighs, Cutters & Carioles, in this post I wanted to show how the youngsters who lived in snow-covered areas were spending their winters. Like the sleighs and cutters, quality images are usually found online at auction and museum websites, but contain a copyright which prohibits reuse on a blog such as this one. However, I believe I've found enough images to show what was in use in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

In 1888, George Barker (1844-1894), created this stereograph of children playing in the snow beside a sled and a snowman. This is a very artistic snow sculpture as shown by the raised arm, shoulder, and two legs. 

The Snow Man - Happy Days, c1888, George Barker, photographer, Niagara Falls, New York. Source: Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division Washington, D.C.

Sleighs were more elaborate than sleds with sides and a seat like the adult versions. The pull sleigh was pulled by a person or animal, most often a dog, pony, ore even a goat such as this one pulling a Quebec cariole.

Master Corriveau in goat sleigh, Montreal, QC, 1880. Source: http://collections.musee-mccord.qc.ca/en/collection/artifacts/II-55024.1

Although this next image is undated, wikimedia commons has tagged it as a Victorian trade card. Manufactured by North Western Sleigh Co, it shows one of the swell-body type sleighs of my last post.

No. 23 Children's Cutter by North Western Sleigh Co. (Wholesale Manufacturers). Source: commons.wikimedia

The push type of sleigh didn't require an animal and was mainly for children and invalids. They were made of wicker or wood with iron or bent wood runners and was a larger version of the doll sleighs seen in this next image. Like the adult version, family finances and social circles dictated the look of the sleigh.

Midwinter Carnival, Children's Parade, Doll Sleds, Upper Saranac Lake, N.Y. c1909. Source: Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division Washington, D.C.

Many farm children and prairie settlers made do with all-wood push sleighs, which were used for work as well as play. 

Moodie children playing in the snow, Kelowna, British Columbia. Ca. 1911-1912.

Source: Glenbow Archives, Calgary, Alberta

Sleds were sleighs without sides, although the term is often interchangeable. For instance, a wooden sleigh with low sides and wooden runners could be referred to as a sleigh, sled, or even a sledge depending on the type of runners and use. A sledge, for example, was like a barge. It was a platform on timbers running low to the ground, a working vehicle most often used for hauling things, including people when the need arose. 

Children being pulled on sled, Spencer Ranch, Milk River, Alberta. 1913, Source: Glenbow Archives, Calgary, Alberta

A sled could have high iron runners that enabled it to glide along the snow, yet less expensive models used wooden runners, or even wood covered with a metal strip. From this next photo, it appears this type of sled was used on grass during summer training of a young lad's dog as well.

Boy with dog hooked up to sled, Crowsnest Pass, Alberta. Ca. 1915. Source: Glenbow Archives, Calgary, Alberta

Today we call it sledding, but historically, sledding down a hill has been known as coasting - a rather sedate word for the fast pace of iron runners which shoot down a hill at high speeds. 

Snow, Children Sledding, Washington, D.C, c1915-1923, glass negative, Harris & Ewing, photographer. Source: Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division Washington, D.C.

Wooden runners may not have been as fast, but their enjoyment can be seen on the faces of these boys.

Two boys on a wooden sled in winter, Edmonton, Alberta. 1913, Source: Glenbow Archives, Calgary, Alberta

Sledding was enjoyed wherever a snow-covered slope was found. In Rochester, an open-air school built a wooden chute (slide) so the children could enjoy this winter activity. 

Sledding, Rochester, Out of Door School, Coasting on the Toboggan. c1908-1915. Source: Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division Washington, D.C

This photo of sledding on a wooden chute fascinates me. Mostly because I'm not aware of the term, 'open-air school', and also because of their school uniforms. Does anyone have any information that could enlighten us?

My most memorable experience of sledding is of an abandoned ski hill where the coasting was super-fast, but the remnants of summer weeds slapped our faces as we whizzed past. I'm sure I ate a few seeds on my way down.

What about you? 

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Anita Mae Draper's historical romances are written under the western skies of the Saskatchewan prairie where her love of research and genealogy yield fascinating truths that layer her stories with rich historical details.  Anita's short story, Here We Come A-Wassailing, was a finalist for the Word Guild's 2015 Word Awards. Her novellas are included in Austen in Austin Volume 1, The American Heiress Brides Collection, and The Secret Admirer Romance Collection. Readers can check out Anita's Pinterest boards for a visual idea of her stories to enrich their reading experience.  Discover more at:

Website - www.anitamaedraper.com

Pinterest - www.pinterest.com/anitamaedraper/