From the Annals of Luzerne County, a local history of Luzerne County published in 1866:

“Written by Richard Drinker, Esq., December 25, 1830 and published in the ‘Susquehanna Democrat.'”

Christmas

Turkeys! who on Christmas bled,
Turkeys! who on corn have fed,
Welcome to us now you’re dead,
And in the frost have hung.

‘Now’s the day, and now’s the hour,’
Through the market how we scour,
Seeking turkeys to devour,
Turkeys old and young;

Who would be a turkey hen?
Fed and fattened in a pen –
Killed and eat by hungry men –
Can you tell, I pray?

La the proud old turkeys low,
Let the young ones run and grow,
To market they’re not fit to go,
Until next Christmas Day.

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Read more about Christmas in the Coal Region

Golden-tinged memories of Christmas Eve recalled in the dark days of the Civil War | 1861

Christmas Eve in Pottsville | December 24, 1902

A ‘wet’ Christmas in the Coal Region during Prohibition

Christmas in a Coal Region ‘patch town’

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