December 2014 - Bradford County Heritage Association

The Bradford County Heritage Association
Heritage Village and Farm Museum
PO Box 265 Troy PA 16947 / Rt 14 North Gate 2 Troy PA
www.TheHeritageVillage.org
BCHA Party Line
contact us: Info@TheHeritageVillage.org
Volume 4 Issue 12 December 2014
New Year's Traditions
Borgna Brunner
"Auld Lang Syne"
Should auld acquaintance be
forgot,
And never brought to mind?
Should auld acquaintance be
forgot,
And auld lang syne.
CHORUS:
For auld lang syne, my dear,
For auld lang syne,
We'll tak a cup of kindness yet,
For auld lang syne!
Craft Idea
The most commonly sung song for English-speakers on New Year's
Eve, "Auld Lang Syne" is an old Scottish song that was first
published by the poet Robert Burns in the 1796 edition of the
book, Scots Musical Museum. Burns transcribed it (and made some
refinements to the lyrics) after he heard it sung by an old man
from the Ayrshire area of Scotland, Burns's homeland.
It is often remarked that "Auld Lang Syne" is one of the most
popular songs that nobody knows the lyrics to. “Auld Lang Syne”
literally translates as "old long since" and means "times gone by."
The song asks whether old friends and times will be forgotten and
promises to remember people of the past with fondness,
"For auld lang syne, we'll tak a cup o' kindness yet."
It was bandleader Guy Lombardo, who popularized the song and
turned it into a New Year's tradition. Lombardo first heard "Auld
Lang Syne" in his hometown of London, Ontario, where it was sung
by Scottish immigrants. When he and his brothers formed the
famous dance band, Guy Lombardo and His Royal Canadians, the
song became one of their standards. Lombardo played the song at
midnight at a New Year's eve party at the Roosevelt Hotel in New
York City in 1929, and a tradition was born. After that, Lombardo's
version of the song was played every New Year's Eve from the
1930s until 1976 at the Waldorf Astoria. In the first years it was
broadcast on radio, and then on television. The song became such a
New Year's tradition that "Life magazine wrote that if Lombardo
failed to play 'Auld Lang Syne,' the American public would not
believe that the new year had really arrived."
‘Farm Days 1866’
The Ice Harvest chapter in the book Farmer Boy
Mary Alice Bower explains the purpose and function
of the Ice House at ‘Farm Days 1866’
Ice House made by Terry Lutz,
sawdust donated by Cummings Lumber and
Ice donated by Iced Out.
The ice pond was a mile away, Almanzo
snuggled under fur robes on the bob sled.
Neighbors or hired help all helped. Hired help was
paid in food goods, ex: salt pork from the barrels in
the cellar.
The process really was simple. All it required was an ax,
a crosscut saw, a team and wagon which everyone had,
ice tongs which the blacksmith could make, a pond or river
close by, a shed or temporary building, sawdust from the
numerous saw mills and--here's the catch--lots of heavy
labor during the coldest weather of the year.
To start cutting they
chopped a hole in the
ice with an ax and then used a coarse toothed crosscut saw to saw
the blocks. Each block was about three by five feet and weighed
about a hundred pounds. They started cutting in the middle of the
pond and worked their way back to the banks, sawing as far back
to the banks as the saw would cut without hitting the ground and
getting as much ice as they could without getting wet.
Once cut, the ice was carried
with ice tongs to a horse-drawn wagon equipped with an end gate and
sixteen inch side racks where it was stacked like bales of hay are
stacked today. It took two men with ice tongs--one on each end--to
load a hundred pounds in the wagon. Each wagon load of ice weighed
about two tons. The ice was then hauled to the ice house where about
twelve inches of sawdust was already spread on the floor.
At the ice house, the ice was stacked one cake on top of another,
eighteen inches from the wall. built up just like you were building up
brick or stone. Then they filled all the space between the walls and
the ice with sawdust and
covered the top with
sawdust to keep the
air from getting to
the ice.
Our Museum has an
Ice Harvest exhibit
Pennsylvania Heritage
Festival
September 19 –20,
2015
Volunteers
The Heart of the Museum,
Programs and Events
This lighted star located on the hill outside of
Columbia Cross Roads can be seen traveling north of
Troy on Rt. 14. For the 28th year, the star is an annual
tradition of the Jim VanBlarcom family in celebration
of Christmas.
Photo– Amanda Miller
2014 BCHA Board Members/ Officers/ Committees,
Program Chairs
President– Ralph Knapp *
Vice President– Margaret Winder
Treasurer– Janet Ordway * Secretary– Barbara Barrett*
Margaret Winder– Volunteer Coordinator
Deb Lutz*, Joie* Braisington, Bonnie* & Gary Pierce,
Dale Palmer * Barbara Morris, Bruce Staudt, Connie Boyles,
Joanadele Collins*, Todd Boyles, Marty Roloson
Committees: * denotes PA Heritage Festival,
Collections– Joie & Bill Brasington, Janet Ordway,
Inn– Kay Saxton, Bus Tours– Barb Pulver
A Pennsylvania Dutch tradition
says that it’s good luck to eat pork
for the new year because pigs
foraged forward for their food and
don’t look back. In years past, food
in the larder for winter was the equivalent of
prosperity. Having a hog to slaughter and pork to
eat at the New Year’s meal meant a family would
have food for winter months. Because cabbage is a
late fall crop, the most efficient way to preserve it
for the winter was by turning it into sauerkraut.
Brining cabbage takes 6-8 weeks, which means that
October would be ready to eat just as the new year
was arriving.
Men, women and children stood in a line of 3,303
people for hours in the cold and wind for a chance
to shake hands with President Calvin Coolidge
On January 1, 1801, the first public reception was held
in the President's House, and a democratic social
custom began. From 1801 until its end in 1932, the
New Year's Reception at the White House was a
tradition met with anticipation by diplomats,
government officials, military officers, and the public
alike. Everyone from the common citizen to the highest
-ranking diplomat was welcomed. By the early 20th
century, crowds swelled to more than 6,000, and a line
on the sidewalk outside the White House snaked out
beyond the gates and around the block bordering the
old State, War, and Navy building (Eisenhower
Executive Office Building). Library of Congress
Your feedback is most welcome please send your comments: via bbarrett362@comcast.net
or to- Barbara Barrett 309 W Keller St Lock Haven PA 17745
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