Little-Known Finger Lakes Facts – The Seward House in Auburn

Fanny and Her Father shared a close relationship

William H. Seward lived part of his life in the Finger Lakes region and was secretary of State to Abraham Lincoln.  His daughter Fanny was an aspiring writer whose diaries have given rich insights into her father’s and her family’s life in and outside the public eye.  We even know that one of her father’s favorite party drink was Roman Punch, shared here, thanks to an article contributed by the Seward House’s former Executive Director, Peter Wisbey.

The Seward House, located at 33 South Street in Auburn, NY is open Year ’round, Tuesday through Saturday 10 am – 4 pm. It is closed Mondays and major holidays and also during the entire month of January. Admission is Adults $8, AAA/Senior Citizens/Military $7, Students with ID $5,Children under 6 and Circle of Friends Free.

Photo is in the public domain.

 

The Seward House: Holiday Traditions of the 19th Century – New Year’s Day

Thanks to Peter Wisbey, Former Executive Director of the Seward House, for the following Guest Editorial

New Year’s Day in the 19th Century

While Christmas was a family celebration, New Year’s Day calling was a community-wide event.  Well-wishers traveled from house to house, paying their respects and partaking of the hospitality of homeowners.  The Sewards, like other families, laid out tables of food and drink to their callers.  When William Seward was inaugurated as governor on January 1, 1839, twelve-year-old Augustus Seward wrote that their Albany home was spread with five tables set with turkeys, ham, beef, corn beef, alamode beef, New Year’s cakes, crackers, cheese, champagne and wine.  He also noted that “all the meat was trimed [sic] off with fringed paper of all coulers, white, red, blue, straw couleur, pink.”

Roman Punch may have filled this punch bowl

Do you have an inclination to celebrate like the Sewards?  It can be argued that William Seward’s favorite party drink – it appears repeatedly on menus and in the family’s bills and receipts – was “Roman Punch.”  Here is a recipe adapted from Marion Harland’s 1871 book, Common Sense in the Household.

Roman Punch

Mix:

2 c. strong sweet lemonade

½ c. champagne or other sparkling wine

½ c. rum

Juice of 2 oranges

Whites of 2 eggs well beaten with

1 c. 4X sugar

Refrigerate until very cold and serve in punch cups. Or put into freezing tray until partially frozen. Stir until smooth, then allow to freeze throughout. Stir well again and serve in sherbet glasses or punch cups at dinner.

Source: Louise Belden, The Festive Tradition, W.W. Norton, 1983.

Seward house is located at 33 South Street in Auburn.  For more information about the museum, hours of operation and special events for the holidays, please call 315-252-1283 or visit the Seward House online.

Photos courtesy of The Seward House

If you enjoyed this post, you may also want to read: Holiday Traditions of the 19th Century: Christmas and Holiday Traditions of the 19th Century: Thanksgiving.

 

 

The Seward House: Holiday Traditions of the 19th Century – Christmas

Thanks to Peter Wisbey, Former Executive Director of of the Seward House, for the following Guest Editorial

Christmas in the 19th Century

In the nineteenth century, Christmas was a private, family-oriented celebration.  Much has been written about the popularization of Christmas during this period.  Our modern view of Santa Claus as a “Jolly Old Elf” stems from the popular images drawn by Thomas Nast for Harper’s magazines from the 1860s to the 1880s.

 

Christmas Trees were decorated with natural materials

The first Christmas trees were small tabletop affairs.  They were often decorated with natural materials – colored leaves, dried flowers, cookies, paper cornucopia ornaments filled with small candies and sugared nuts.  The branches were draped with paper chains and garlands of popcorn.  Toys and small gifts could be tied to the branches which were also draped with cotton.  Sixteen-year-old Nellie Seward recorded in her journal in 1876 that their neighbor Mr. Osborne’s tree was “very prettily ornamented with cotton (to represent snow) and various fancy articles.”

Candles were clipped or wired to the tips of the branches.  One popular magazine called for a ratio of 100 candles per foot of tree.  A lit tree, however, required special attention.  Homeowners were reminded not to leave their tree unattended and to keep a bucket of sand and a wet sponge nearby to douse any errant flames.

Children enjoyed the winter weather outdoors by sledding, skating and engaging in snowball fights.  Inside they had a variety of parlor games.  “Hot Buttered Beans” required a seeker to find a small note or ribbon hidden in a room.  The child who hid the ribbon called out “you burn,” or “you are cold” to the seekers.  The American Girls Book of 1855 details a game called “The Christmas Bag” in which a paper sack filled with sugar plums is suspended in a doorway.  Blindfolded children swing a stick to break the bag and spill its contents on the floor.

Seward house is located at 33 South Street in Auburn.  For more information about the museum, hours of operation and special events for the holidays, please call 315-252-1283 or visit the Seward House online.

Photos courtesy of The Seward House

If you enjoyed this post, you may also want to read: Holiday Traditions of the 19th Century: Thanksgiving and Holiday Traditions of the 19th Century: New Year’s Day.