With the Louisiana Purchase in 1804, pioneers began to travel across the Mississippi River bringing new customs to the Warren County area.

During this time, most settlers celebrated the English tradition of Yuletide, with the custom of burning the Yule Log.

It was the time of year when the few settlers living in what eventually became Montgomery County and then Warren County, adapted observances of Christmas to the frontier environment.

It was the time of year when various members of the family came together at their family home. Leafing through the family album, attending shooting matches, making homemade candy and Christmas decorations were typical activities for Warren County residents.

The Dr. James Howard Compton family kept 16 feather ticks stored away to accommodate the guests over the holiday. Because Christmas was not designated a legal holiday by the Missouri General Assembly until April 9, 1895, 65 early Missouri legislators were expected to attend sessions during the Christmas season.

A tradition in Warren County in the 1920s and 1930s was the Community Christmas tree decorated with ornaments made by schoolchildren.

The Warrenton Garden Club designated 7 p.m. Dec. 25 as the time when old Santa would arrive with a treat for all the little folks under 12 years of age.

The Evangelical Church was in charge of the music and led the community singing. The gathering around the Community Christmas tree was a holiday tradition for many years.

Nellie Ruge, president of Farmers and Merchant Bank in Wright City, commented in the Warrenton Journal in 2002, when she was growing up in Wright City, her family’s Christmas tree was lit brilliantly, if only for  a second or two.

Each Christmas Eve, Ruge’s family would put up the family’s tree and deck it out with ornaments, popcorn strings and about 10 candles. Ruge’s father, afraid of fire, would stand by with a jug of water.

Moments after the family lit the candles they would immediately blow them out to keep a beautiful Christmas memory from becoming a Christmas disaster.

Jennie Bauer, in the Warrenton Journal in 2002 stated that in the 1930s, as the country tried to climb out of the Depression, her mother made her and her sister corncob dolls. The dolls had a corncob for a body with padding wrapped around the corncob.

When Eda Jackson made the dolls, she fashioned the hair from strands of cloth from rags. Several years later, those strands fell off the dolls’s heads. Not wanting to disappoint her girls, Edna cut off some of her own hair and attached the hair to the dolls’ head.

Bauer had such fond memories of those corncob dolls, she painted a picture of her and her sister sitting in a field playing with the dolls.

Warren County Historical Society Museum volunteer, Janette Hysong, recalled in the Warrenton Journal in 2002, when she was 10 or 11 on Christmas Eve she heard a thumping in the attic of their home. As they were trying to fall asleep. She had wondered what was making that sound.

When she woke up the next day and asked her brother about it, he said the sound was their parents bringing down their gifts for Christmas morning.

Up to that point, Hysong had believed in Santa Claus, but she didn’t think her older brother would tell her a lie. She accepted that new reality. Or so she thought.

The next Christmas, Hysong’s family was eating dinner in the dining room when all of a sudden, Santa Claus, popped his head in front of the family’s dining room window.

As a reminder to retain the history of Christmas in Warren County, the museum would like for Warren countians to look through family photo albums.

The museum would especially like copies of photographs with the Community Christmas tree in Warrenton to add to its archives. The tree was located at the intersection by the original Nieburg Furniture store that is now being remodeled for offices and apartments.

At one time, a sign in the middle of the intersection announced the placement of the Community Christmas tree.

This story was provided by the Warren County Historical Society, which is funded by donations and run by volunteers.

The museum is located at 102 W. Walton in Warrenton and is open from 10 to 4 p.m. Thursday and Friday and 1 to 4 p.m. Sunday.

For information, to attend an event or to make a donation, call 636-456-3820 or email museum@warrencountymohistory.com.