The 21st Michigan Civil War Christmas Party

I remember way back in 2004 when I heard of the Christmas party that the 21st Michigan Civil War reenacting unit that I had joined was having.  It was being held in a sports bar with beer and pizza and,  of course,  modern dress.  It flabbergasted me to think of it;  here were people who supposedly loved to dress in period clothing throughout the year,  and yet the Christmas party was totally modern.  My thoughts were  (and still are)  that anyone can meet up at a sports bar and have pizza and beer any time of the year, right?  So why not do something a little special for Christmas?

So it was then that I came up with the idea of having a period-type Christmas party,  and it was held at my own home.  Oh,  it was certainly nothing to call the newspapers about,  for it was a sort of trial run and,  well,  most who came were dressed fairly farby  (myself included - oh!  are the pictures bad!  Try as I might,  I can't even post any here,  for they are that bad!),  but it gave me the initial flicker of having a period Christmas gathering of my new reenacting friends - of learning and expanding on this root of what was to come.

And that expansion happened the following year,  Christmas 2005,  when I suggested having the 21st Michigan party at the old 1872 school house in my city.   Ha!  I was met with cocked heads and smirks and a number of comments of  "Why would we do that?"

But I forged ahead and,  because I had a few folks who backed me, I went ahead and planned it and hoped that more than a few people would turn up.

Well,  I was very pleased to find the majority of the unit actually did show up,  and nearly every one who did told me how wonderful it was and that we should make this our new tradition.

And for the past 19 years,  we have.

Now here we are,  celebrating Christmas 2024  (in January 2025)---oh,  it may not be held at the old schoolhouse any longer  (for varying reasons),  but we still have a period party.

So,  today's post is a pretty typical for me:  a mix of  photographs from the party and history.

Here are the 21st members who came to and enjoyed the Civil War Christmas party.

(taken from THIS page with slight modifications from yours truly):  It can be difficult to relate to the men and women of the Civil War era.  Despite the extraordinarily different circumstances in which they found themselves,  however,  we can connect with our forebears in traditions such as the celebration of Christmas.  By the mid-19th century,  most of today's familiar Christmas trappings — Christmas carols,  gift giving and tree decoration — were already in place.  Charles Dickens had published  “A Christmas Carol”  in 1843 and indeed,  the Civil War saw the first introductions to the modern image of a jolly and portly Santa Claus through the drawings of Thomas Nast,  a German-speaking immigrant.

For many,  the holiday was a reminder of the profound melancholy that had settled over the entire nation.  

And we have most of the ladies who beat the melancholy by coming out to enjoy the gathering of friends.

Christmas during the Civil War served both as an escape from and a reminder of the awful conflict rending the country in two.  Soldiers looked forward to a day of rest and relative relaxation, but had their moods tempered by the thought of separation from their loved ones.  At home, families did their best to celebrate the holiday, but wondered when the vacant chair would again be filled.
Since we were representing those of the mid-Victorian era,  we carried over some of the ancient traditions of earlier ages.  Rather than gift giving,  our party concentrated on visits,  food & drink,  and music.

Our party took place at the McFadden Ross House,  built in 1839 to be the powder magazine for the Detroit Arsenal at Dearbornville.  Following the closure of the Arsenal in 1875,  the powder magazine building was sold to Nathaniel Ross who,  in 1882-1883,  began converting the structure into a farm house and homestead for his family.  Nearly 70 years later in 1950,  the house’s last inhabitant,  Mary Elizabeth  “Lizzie”  Ross,  willed the house to the City of Dearborn to become a museum.  After substantial renovations,  the McFadden-Ross House officially opened as a Museum in 1956.

And the room here,  I am assuming,  was probably their original sitting room or front parlor.

I loved having our party at the old 1872 Eastpointe School House,  but I have to admit,  to a large extent,  I very much enjoy it here.  What I do miss from the school house is the opportunity to dance a few jigs,  for there ws more room to do such things.

One can imagine a large spread of a fir tree - floor to ceiling - sitting right where this tree is standing now.

Floor-to-ceiling Christmas trees became popular in the United States in the 1890s.  German settlers introduced the Christmas tree tradition to the United States in the later 1700s and early 1800s.  The trees as a decoration quickly went from tabletop size to floor-to-ceiling,  in contrast to the shorter trees  (about four feet)  that were preferred in European cultures.

Larissa and I flank Jackie.
This is Jackie's first time out reenacting in nearly a year - we're so glad to have her back!

Pearl had her fiddle with her and played a few of the older carols along
with Civil War era music.  It all sounded so wonderful!

Sue and Mary sit with Jackie.

Looks like there's some deep conversation going on here.

Located in the Scotch Settlement area of Dearborn Township,  the building known as the Gardner House was built in 1832 by Richard Gardner,  one of the original settlers of the area,  and he and his wife - with their ten children - lived in the relatively small house with clapboard siding for many years. 

The structure was placed inside historic Greenfield Village in 1929 and remained there until 1996 when,  for some odd reason,  it was removed to the premises of the Dearborn Historical Museum.

Henry Ford recounted his own personal memories of the Gardner House: "This morning I was by a home called the Gardner Home, where, as a boy, I used to frequently stop when I was coming back from Detroit at a late hour.  Rather than go on to the house and disturb my father,  I would sleep with the Gardner boys.  This morning I was by that house because we plan on removing it to the historic village we are about to build."

And here I am standing in front of that very house while wearing my 1860s clothing.
It's not very often you see me wearing clothing of the Civil War era anymore.  So when I do,  I try to take advantage of whatever historical items are around,  especially a house!

As I mentioned,  this year's party was a little quieter than usual.  And there's nothing wrong with that.  Sadly,  some of our members have moved quite a ways away,  while others have succumbed to health issues.  Still for others,  life sometimes throws an issue or two to create a prevention.  However,  those of us who were able to make it had a good time.  There was a thought of playing parlor games but it seems everyone was happy just to talk to one another.  With a much lower amount of Civil War reenactments than we used to have,  we all don't get a chance to see each other as often as we'd like,  so catching up was the activity of the day.

I have one more Christmas party post coming up next - - 

and until that time,  I'll see you in time.

And finally - - - - - 

God Bless America~

Something to keep in mind as we head into 2025:

we are at the cusp of what is being called the Semiquincentennial - America's 250th birthday.  The celebration isn't only about the Revolutionary War and the Declaration of Independence - it's about our history --- did you see that?  our history --- which does include the Rev War,  the War of 1812,  the Mexican American War,  the Civil War,  the Spanish American War,  The Great War  (WWI),  World War II,  the War in Korea,  Vietnam War,  the Gulf War,  the electric light,  the steamboat,  the cotton gin,  Jazz and rock n roll,  big band,  country music,  the Great Depression,  immigration,  the automobile,  the aeroplane,  war protests, Civil Rights  man on the moon,  Voyageur spacecraft...America's 250th is about celebrating and commemorating all of this and so much more.

Please remember this as we move into these next few years.

Thanks to Ian Kushnir for allowing me to use one of his photos.

To see some of my exploits in celebrating a  (mostly)  Victorian Christmas,  please click HERE

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