First, let’s get a look at what kids today are asking for. It seems that each year, more and more kids are asking for technology instead of toys. In the Seward County Independent, published in Seward, Nebraska, on December 20th, 2023, they shared letters from local first-grade children to Santa. Among some of the most popular wishes were gaming systems like Playstations and Nintendo Switches. This also included specific games they wished to play, like Madden NFL football for the PlayStation (or as John spelled it, plastasashen). Despite the storm of technology, many kids still wished for dolls, trains, and other classic toys that children have loved for decades.
1999 was the turn of the century, bringing lots of concern over how technology would interpret the year 2000 in its systems (a topic I plan to explore more in the following weeks). In the Washington Evening Journal published in Washington, Iowa, on December 22nd, 1999, children shared their Christmas wishes for that year. The paper held a contest for the best Santa letter and awarded $10 to the winner, who wished for a new golden retriever puppy to replace her dog who had passed. Other Christmas wishes varied from technology to toys to well wishes for others. A few children wanted Santa to give their gifts to those less fortunate instead, a sentiment I find heartwarming. A preschool-aged boy named Jacob asked for a ball and 200 guys (I am not entirely sure what he means by that). Another pre-schooler named Amber asked for a dog, a baby, and a Barbie on a lamp. One child even asked for Snooze and Surprise Dill Pickles, which upon further investigation, I discovered is actually the name of a rugrats doll.
By 1943, many American troops were fighting overseas in World War II. This meant many soldiers weren’t able to spend their Christmas with their families. I can only imagine how many letters to Santa during those years were written to ask for their family members to be home for the holidays and how many soldiers wished they could see their loved ones. I found one case of this in the Crowley Daily Signal, published in Crowley, Louisiana, on December 20th. A young child wrote a letter wishing to have her father back for Christmas, who was far away in the ‘land across the seas’.
From 1929 to 1939, the United States was flung into the Great Depression following a stock market crash that sent the economy into a downward spiral. During this time, around 25% of the workforce was without jobs, and thousands of families faced poverty, foreclosure, and economic ruin. With this context in mind, it makes the wishes of these kids from Arkansas City, Kansas, 1930 all the more significant. Many children’s wishes included house slippers, something that may seem small and insignificant to us in the modern world, but were all those children hoped to open up on Christmas day. Among their wishes were also lots of kids asking for candy and nuts, which were a rare treat at the time. Many cities faced food shortages and food was rationed, as each house was only able to possess a specific amount of the bare essentials. Candy was not one of these essentials, so it makes sense that children would ask for it as a special Christmas treat. The great depression was devastating to so many, but it warms my heart to see that even in their struggle, kids still had the magic of Christmas to cheer them up.
I hope everyone enjoyed this glimpse of Christmases long, long ago. Stay warm this holiday season! Join me again next week to discover more of history’s hidden gems and timeless tales.
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