Brandon Twp.- Mathew Daigle grew up during the Great Depression.
He was one of three senior citizens at the Edna Burton Senior Center and others who recently shared their memories of Christmases when they were children.
Toys weren’t plentiful for Daigle during Christmas in the 1930s, in fact, they were pretty rare. Daigle felt fortunate to get even one gift during hard times. Most gifts during those years were clothes or essentials for him and his four brothers and two sisters.
‘We got maybe one game for the whole family, ‘says the Brandon Township resident, who even remembers one or two years where he wasn’t a good boy and got coal in his stocking. ‘If I got a slingshot or BB gun, that was great.?
Still, Daigle believes because of the financial struggles his family faced, they had a much greater time, appreciating what they did have and enjoying it more than children do now.
‘Kids want so many things nowadays and we never had the advantage of that,? he says. ‘At that time (during the Depression), everyone was in the Christmas spirit more than today.?
Daigle, 84, recalls fondly his mother’s cooking at Christmas when he was a child. She was ill for a number of years, but always made ham dinner at Christmas and liked to bake.
‘Her custard pies were wonderful,? he says.
The Catholic family always attended church services for the holiday and a Christmas tree was also always part of their celebration.
Marjorie Keller decorated her family’s Christmas trees with popcorn and paper chains growing up during the 1930s and 40s. When she was in school, she remembers they would always have a school play with the Nativity and then sing songs of Jesus? birth. The school provided a gift for each child.
‘If you wanted a doll, that’s where you got it,? says Keller, now 77.
At home in Canada where she lived on a farm 30 miles from town with her parents, sister and three brothers, she would hang her stocking, which would be filled with homemade things like mittens and scarves. There was no electricity, instead, they had a Ben Franklin wood burning stove.
Katie Hobson, 84, has memories of gathering around a woo burning stove at the home of cousins in Ohio. Hobson’s would travel with her parents, two sisters, three brothers and grandmother in a Ford Model A with no heat to see the cousins some years for Christmas. When they traveled, they took blankets and wore long underwear.
At her cousins? home, there was no indoor plumbing and a scratchy horsehair couch, but they had a player piano that everyone enjoyed. The cousins would come visit at Hobson’s home in Pontiac for many Christmases, too.
Although Hobson also grew up during the Depression, she recalls fondly big holiday dinners, with ham and turkey. The family would sing carols and crank a Victrola to play Christmas records. She also got presents from Santa.
‘We’d share a doll or a wagon,? Hobson recalls. ‘I shared a doll with my sisters and one year we got a wagon to share between six kids. We didn’t have the money, but we’d always get a stocking with oranges and nuts. The only time of year we got those things. It was always such a great time to be with family.?
Maurine Scramlin, 89, lived on a farm near Oakhill and Reece roads in Groveland Township and recalls participating in the Christmas play at Oak Hill School in the early 1920s.
‘We’d start practice just after Thanksgiving,? said Scramlin. The whole neighborhood would come to the performance. The boys in the class would go out and cut a Christmas tree. After the play we’d get gifts of popcorn balls and oranges. ‘The snow would get deep and dad would hitch up the horse to a small sled. The snow was so deep that we’d go right over the top of the fences.?
Not all memories of Christmas were good ones recalls Scramlin.
‘In 1929, a few days before Christmas, I came down with Scarlet Fever,? she said. The bacterial infections that cause scarlet fever are very contagious and I was all broke out and had was confined to my bedroom. People would come to my window to see me at Christmas.?