Christmas in pioneer Utah a far cry from today

As Diane Whiting stood in the humble kitchen of the historic Andrus house and farm, she spoke to a group of children about the simple — and in some cases nonexistent — Christmas of early Utahns.

"Pioneer children were excited about Christmas, too, but it was different from the holiday we celebrate today," Whiting told the family.

"You mean like Hanukkah?" one young boy asked.

Far from it.

"In pioneer Utah, they were concerned with surviving — not celebrating," she said. "They didn't have a Christmas in 1847."

Above the lights and sounds of bustling Salt Lake City, This Is the Place Heritage Park offers a detailed glimpse each year of the kind of Christmas that the first Utahns would have experienced: one with few, if any, presents, meager surroundings and a deeper appreciation for the Christmas spirit.

In the 10 years of the park's annual Candlelight Christmas, surprised reactions from the visitors are common. A different Christmas, away from piles of expensive presents and large goody-filled stockings, is a concept that can be hard to grasp.

And when park volunteer Whiting tells young visitors about pioneer children's presents — one or two pieces of candy, a handmade necessity and, if they were lucky, an orange — she often gets the same expression: blank stares.

"They're surprised. It's almost incomprehensible because they have so much," she said. "Some don't even understand. It's different from suburban life. It really feels like what Christmas should be, but you won't find it in (the mall). It makes you get that Christmas spirit you kind of forget about. It's a much more peaceful Christmas."

Program coordinator Vicki Strong believes it's important for people to see how their ancestors celebrated the holidays.

"You forget all of the craziness that goes on at the modern Christmas and step back in time," she said.

Of the 60,000 to 70,000 emigrants who settled in the Salt Lake Valley during the late 1800s, more than 98 percent were from Europe and 75 percent from Britain. With emigrants from each country came new traditions and customs.

Stringing popcorn and cranberries together and decorating with small nut or candy-filled lace cornucopias were popular English traditions.

"Things like this were cherished," said volunteer Terrell Dougan, picking up a simple wooden toy. Handmade crafts, like a ring toss, were favorite gifts. "They would have hung the stockings they knit themselves. In the stocking they would have wanted most for an orange from California."

Emigrants from Sweden used what they called the yule season to start the winter harvest. Across the ceiling would be long strings of cut-up squash, pumpkin, green beans and other vegetables.