“Holiday Greetings” – A December 1944 advertisement for Stegmaier Brewery wished customers a “Victorious New Year”

A patriotic, holiday-themed beer advertisement from the Wilkes-Barre-based Stegmaier Brewing Company appeared in December 1944.

Letters from War – Holiday greetings from the front lines in Nazi Germany, November 1944

Desperate to share Christmas cheer and hopes for a happy New Year, Pfc. Irvin Schwartz wished holiday greetings to friends and family through the newspaper.

Four Christmases – Holiday excerpts from Henry Keiser’s Civil War diary

Four diary entries from the Civil War document the evolution of holiday experiences of a soldier from Pennsylvania's Coal Region.

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

A writer in Luzerne County penned a beautiful, yet sad, remembrance of Christmas Eves past and the memories they inspired amid a terrible time in the country's history.

Letters from War – A powerfully written letter on Christmas Day, 1943

This is part of our “Letters from War” series documenting the World War II letters of Irvin Schwartz of Pine Grove, PA. The letters were all published in the West Schuylkill Press-Herald between 1943 and 1945.  Read the previous letter here Pfc. Irvin Schwartz in 1943 Somewhere in England Christmas Day, 1943 5:30 PM Dear. … Continue reading Letters from War – A powerfully written letter on Christmas Day, 1943

Letters from War – Feeling homesick around the holidays in England, December 1943

This is part of our “Letters from War” series documenting the World War II letters of Irvin Schwartz of Pine Grove, PA. The letters were all published in the West Schuylkill Press-Herald between 1943 and 1945.  Read the previous letter here On a cold, windy night in December 1943, Pfc. Irvin Schwartz crawled his way … Continue reading Letters from War – Feeling homesick around the holidays in England, December 1943

Letters from War – Preparations for a war-time Christmas in England, November 1943

This is part of our “Letters from War” series documenting the World War II letters of Irvin Schwartz of Pine Grove, PA. The letters were all published in the West Schuylkill Press-Herald between 1943 and 1945.  Read the previous letter here Pfc. Irvin Schwartz had Christmas on his mind when he penned the following letter … Continue reading Letters from War – Preparations for a war-time Christmas in England, November 1943

Christmas in a Coal Region ‘patch town’

Discover the traditions of a Christmas in a 19th-century Schuylkill County patch town, where miners’ families in Kalmia, gathered around a simple Christmas tree in their schoolhouse. Through firsthand accounts, explore how Coal Region communities celebrated amidst coal dust and hard labor. Read the Full Story.