Strange New England

It is that time of year again, and apart from the religious significance of the day, there is the secular aspect of days off, possible Christmas bonuses, money spent on gifts and travel, travel, travel. One thing that most people in New England take for granted is that we have a strong Christmas tradition in this part of the world and in some ways, we are among its greatest keepers. However, that has not always been the case and you should know the truth about the history of Christmas in Maine and Massachusetts. You might be interested to know that the modern idea of Christmas, and the associated days off, are fairly new creations, less than two hundred years old. We did not always make merry at Christmas. The original European settlers of these lands were protestant puritans, renegades from the Church of England and a people desperate to begin in a new land away from the shadows of religious intolerance they were subject to in Europe at the time. More than one historian as claimed that our founders were 'th