’Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the house
not a creature was stirring,
not even a mouse.
The stockings were hung by the chimney with care,
in hopes that
St. Nicholas
soon would be there.

Thus starts the beautiful Christmas poem written in 1822 by Clement C. Moore for his nine children. The story goes on to tell of a little elf-like man who travels in a miniature sleigh pulled by eight tiny reindeer. This jolly man, who must be St. Nick, slips down the chimney and leaves gifts for the sleeping children and then is quickly away, into the night calling, “Happy Christmas to all, and to all a good-night.”

This early hardcover book that includes Clement C. Moore’s “A Visit From St. Nicholas” and other Christmas stories would be a welcome gift this Christmas. It is in fair condition and would sell for about $50 to $75. Only the cover is in color. The illustrations are woodcuts.

We all know the story, even if we can’t recite the poem perfectly. Many families, like ours, read the poem as a tradition on Christmas Eve. But the story of how the poem came to be makes it clear that this wonderful story was never meant to be published and was almost lost to the world.

The accepted story of the creation of the poem called “A Visit From St. Nicholas” tells that Clement Moore, inspired by a carriage driver that took him out on Christmas Eve afternoon to buy one more turkey for his family, wrote the poem as an afterthought to pass the time. His driver had a long white beard and was quite affable, reminding Moore of St. Nicholas. As the sleigh bells rang on the horses’ harness, he jotted down some rhyming lines on a scrap of paper and shoved it into his pocket.

After returning home with the requested turkey, he read the short poem to his children. They loved it. Inspired by their enthusiasm, he added more lines and reread it to them after Christmas Eve dinner. The poem was then forgotten by Moore, but not by his children.

What Is It? Can you guess how this cast-iron item was used? Once one of a pair, they were quite useful in the winter. What is it?

A few months later, one of the older children showed the poem to a friend of the family. Not knowing that Moore had no intention of publishing the poem, the friend sent it to the Troy, N.Y., Sentinel. The next year, it was published, anonymously, right before Christmas Eve.

The Sentinel readers loved it too and begged to know who had written the poem. But it wasn’t until 1844, at the request of his children, that Moore admitted he was the author of “A Visit From St. Nicholas.” It was published in hundreds of publication, printed in books and is still one of the most endearing stories of Christmas. His description of St. Nick set the stage for the image of the jolly Santa that we all know today.

Thomas Nast, an illustrator of political cartoons, was also inspired by the poem. His wood engravings of the story were published in Harpers Weekly a few years later and are closely linked with Moore’s poem. Those images still define the Christmas scenes of Santa’s journey that we treasure today.

So, as you “dash away, dash away all” this season, stop and take a moment to read this beautiful poem with your family and friends. I hope everyone has a wonderful holiday season and a successful New Year!

Advertisement