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Epic Celebrations Lit Victorian New Years

Epic celebrations lit Victorian New Years. People have always celebrated the turn of the year. Some did it quietly and others with a giant pop.

Following are a few of our favorite epic celebrations.

New Year’s Eve Was A Gala Affair At The Nickerson Mansion In Chicago

By the late 1800s and early 1900s, wealthy Americans including the Vanderbilts and Astors in New York organized opulent s soirees all year long.  New Year’s Eve and  New Year’s Day were particularly elaborate.

In Gilded Age Chicago, socialite Matilda Nickerson was known for her epic celebrations. On New Year’s Eve of 1890 her guests danced to music by bandleader Johnny Hand and his Orchestra.

The Driehaus Musem writes:

“In 1890, the Nickerson’s “Marble Palace” was the site of a lavish New Year’s Eve Reception. The guest list of over sixty-five included the children of neighbors and other prominent Chicago families from both the North and South sides. The Nickersons followed the common practice of featuring elaborate floral arrangements at receptions.” (Driehaus Museum)

 They decorated their famed marble hall with calla lilies. The centre-piece on the dining-room table consisted of a bank of delicate pink carnations on a background of maiden-hair ferns.” (Chicago Daily Tribune, “Children Make Merry,” January 1, 1891)

For her epic celebrations women wore elaborate evening gowns often designed by the famed House of Worth in Paris. Men wore formal white tie with black tailcoats. The trendsetters of their day, they received great attention in newspaper society pages.

“According to one account, Bertha Palmer wore a “black velvet gown, the bodice studded with diamonds, and a diamond tiara in her hair” at her New Year’s Eve cotillion (Driehaus Musem/ Society World,” January 6, 1901).

The finest chefs prepared sumptuous holiday menus to entice diners.

French Brands such as Moët & Chandon catered to the burgeoning luxury markets in Europe and America.

Lincoln Signed Emancipation Proclamation January 1, 1863

This was one of America’s epic celebrations. With the country deeply divided and approaching its third year of Civil War, not everyone was celebrating. Abraham Lincoln was well aware of the historical weight of the document on which he put final edits the morning of January 1, 1863.

According to White House History, President Lincoln did not enjoy New Year’s Day receptions during peace times. But he recognized the signing of this document on the first day of 1863 was both a time for festivities and a symbol of hope.

As usual, Lincoln shook hands that afternoon with a long line of people. When it came time to sign the Proclamation, he feared his hand would shake.

“I never in my life felt more certain that I was doing right, than I do in signing this paper. But I have been receiving calls and shaking hands since nine o’clock this morning, till my arm is stiff and numb. Now this signature is one that will be closely examined. If they find my hand trembled they will say, ‘he had some complications.’ But anyway, it is going to be done.”

He signed without wavering. The following year, African Americans were invited to the New Year’s Day Reception at the White House, for the first time in history.

White House History writes:

“Had a black man attempted to do so just a few years earlier, the Washington Weekly Chronicle commented the day after the reception, “he would have been in all probability roughly handled for his impudence.” This time, though, the men were received courteously albeit to the surprise of the attending journalists”. (WhiteHouseHistory.org)

Mummers Parade Became A Favorite In Philadelphia

Among the epic celebrations of New Year’s Eve in America, The mummers Parade was a favorite. The raucous street festivities became an official institution in Philadelphia in 1901.

According to Christian DuComb in the Encyclopedia of Greater Philadelphia the parade:

“…brought together many of the loosely organized groups of folk performers who roamed the streets each year between Christmas Eve and New Year’s Day. Known variously as mummers, shooters, belsnickles, fantasticals, and callithumpians, these masqueraders traced their roots to immigrants from England, Sweden, and Germany who introduced mumming to pre-Revolutionary Philadelphia.” (Encyclopedia of Greater Philadelphia)

Similar to Thanksgiving Day Maskers in other parts of the United States, most nineteenth-century mummers were young, working-class men, and their street-side antics could be outrageous.

“Throughout much of northern Europe and colonial North America, groups of mummers roved from house to house during the Christmas season, entertaining their hosts and expecting food, drink, or a small tip in return. Mumming and belsnickling in southeastern Pennsylvania persisted into the 1800s,,,.

While the Mummers parade has updated over the years, it remains a favorite among epic celebrations.

Nellie Bly And Elizabeth Bisland Raced Through Their Victorian New Year 1889

December 31, 1889—Nellie Bly and Elizabeth Bisland had completed a little more than half their plotted courses around the world in opposite directions. Bly was aboard the Oceanic, somewhere between Hong Kong and Yokohama on her way to San Francisco. Meanwhile, Bisland spent the day in Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) before continuing on her westward course. Although in separate places, both experienced epic celebrations on  their Victorian New Year.

Nellie Bly later wrote in Around The World In 72 Days:

“I spent New Year’s eve between Hong Kong and Yokohama. The day had been so warm that we wore no wraps. In the forepart of the evening the passengers sat together in Social Hall talking, telling stories and laughing at them. The captain owned an organette which he brought into the hall, and he and the doctor took turns at grinding out the music.” P.98  

Elizabeth Bisland later wrote In Seven Stages: A Flying Trip Around the World:

“It is the last night of the old year, and the dining-hall has been converted into a ballroom. The men, all in white, with gay sashes about their middle, are circling languidly with pretty English girls in their arms. A high, warm wind whirls through the veranda and flutters the draperies of the lookers-on.”

Wild Victorian New Year’s Eve Party Hosted In Dinosaur’s Belly

It was one of the most coveted invitations to a New Year’s Eve Party on December 31, 1853. Only a few (20+) guests received the hand made invites. All were “celebrity” scientists of the day. Why such a small, intimate affair? Space was limited because the wild Victorian New Year’s Eve Party was hosted in the belly of a dinosaur. Only so many could fit.

New Year’s Eve Rocked The Victorian Era

New Year’s Eve Rocked the Victorian Era. From the Victorian Era’s version of First-Foot superstitions on New Year’s Eve to speed dating on New Year’s Day, we can thank Queen Victoria for many of our Christmas and New Year’s traditions.

For young people, New Year’s Day was a time for “calling.” Women and boys up to age 10 stayed home, while gentleman and eligible bachelors visited houses. Some gentlemen would visit between 30 and 100 houses on New Year’s Day.  Of course, they would be obliged to have a drink at each house.

Wishing You A Happy New Year!

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