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As you can imagine, Christmas celebrations and traditions date all the way back to Eau Claire’s early days. Of course, they were smaller and simpler back then when Eau Claire was just a cluster of lumbering villages built around the confluence of the Eau Claire and Chippewa rivers.

One of the first recorded Christmas celebrations was a Christmas dance held at Reed’s Hall back in 1857. That was one of the first large buildings in town, and it stood roughly where the State Theatre is today. A grand total of 60 tickets were sold for that Christmas dance. That might not sound very impressive, but bear in mind that two years earlier, there had only been enough ladies in town to make two couples! And with that kind of ratio, the women are always in charge!

One early Eau Claire Christmas memory was recorded by Fred Graham, son of one of the town’s earliest settlers. He recalled a Christmas celebration around 1870 at the Presbyterian Church on Barstow Street.

He said, quote: “It was the wonderful vision of Mr. Callahan dressed as Santa Claus, with a bag full of toys on his back, being lowered by rope from a trap door opening in the ceiling of the church. I can remember so well his descent clinging to that rope and twisting around and round. I am sure that such an act would be a sensation even in these modern days.”

Haha, well, we agree with Mr. Graham. When it comes to holiday entertainment, you can never go wrong with a Commando Santa.

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