'Uncovering America's Victorian Era Holiday Celebrations' Webinar

“The children were nestled all snug in their beds, while visions of sugar-plums danced in their heads.” -A Visit from St. Nicholas (1823)

While these two lines from Clement Clarke Moore's famous poem capture the magical charm associated with Christmas, what exactly are sugar-plums, and why aren't they found at Christmas dinner 200 years later? From plum pudding to the ubiquitous Christmas Tree, it's time to discover the many holiday traditions of the Victorian era that defined, or still define, the Christmas spirit today.

Join New York Adventure Club as we travel back in time to 1800s America and uncover the surprising backstory of holiday customs, foods, and traditions that got their start during the Victorian era.

Led by author and food historian Becky Libourel Diamond, our fun and informative virtual experience will include:

• An in-depth look at the custom of the Christmas Tree and how it became adopted and accepted, including the types of ornaments favored by Victorian Americans
• Learn about the significance of Advent in Victorian American and the activities centered around it, including the hanging of an Advent Wreath and Advent Calendar
• A discussion of Victorian Christmas dinner preparations and the types of foods typically served, including roast turkey, fish, celery, cheese balls and deviled spaghetti
• A look at Victorian holiday dessert offerings and the traditions behind them, including plum pudding, sugar plums, gingerbread and Pfeffernüsse
• Why elaborate holiday balls and cotillions were such an integral part of Victorian holiday celebrations, with an emphasis on some of the more famous ones, including debutante balls, Ward McAllister’s New Year’s Ball and Newport’s New Year’s Ball
• How Victorian era presidents, such as Grover Cleveland and his family, celebrated Christmas at the White House
• The Christmas Society and other charitable groups and their contributions to holiday giving during Victorian America
• An explanation of Twelfth Night celebrations and activities, including the significance of rich Twelfth Night Cake

Afterward, we’ll have a Q&A with Becky — any and all questions are welcomed and encouraged!

Can't make it live? Don't worry, you'll have access to the full replay for one week!

See you there, virtually!

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***A full replay of the experience will be available to all registered guests for up to a week

****If the event has already passed, but it's been less than a week, you can still register for it on our website's active replay section!

About Becky

Becky Libourel diamond is a writer, librarian, and research historian. She has been writing about food since 2008, parlaying her passion for food and history into the publication of The Gilded Age Cookbook (August 2023), The Thousand Dollar Dinner and Mrs. Goodfellow: The Story of America’s First Cooking School. Her current project is Process: A History of Processed Food. She lives in Yardley, PA.

Testimonials

"Info I wasn't aware of, and I'm a history buff." -Debra

"Becky Diamond is a great speaker with lots of good information." -Marybeth
"Becky’s presentations are so well done . Very well researched. Like the pictures seeing what the food looks like prepared today when she showed that of the Turkey and celery vases. Who knew on the celery vases?! lol!" -Noelle

"Very pleased. Learned new details about Victorian life" -Millie

"Fun and informative" -Martha

"Becky has such a command of the details of the many events that she describes, excellent photos & drawings, yummy word pictures, just takes you right into the story & adventure. It is fun to see where some of our Christmas traditions come from & evolve. Thanks Becky!" -Sharon

"Very interesting talk. I enjoyed learning about each of the topics, especially about the Christmas dinners." -Phyllis

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Categories: Virtual, Moments in History

Event Venue

Online