2026-07-24T19:00:00-05:00 | Professor Christmas

What the Cratchits Actually Ate: A Victorian Christmas Dinner, Course by Course

A small goose stretched with applesauce, a pudding like a speckled cannon-ball, and gin punch served in a custard cup — what Christmas dinner at the Cratchits’ table really looked like, and why it still matters.

The Poem That Invented the Modern Santa

In 1823, an anonymous poem in a small New York newspaper gave Santa his reindeer, his chimney, his belly, and his night. Two centuries later, we still cannot say for sure who wrote it.

Why Do We Hang Stockings? The Answer Begins Centuries Before Santa

A real bishop, a desperate father, and gold thrown through a window in the dark — the strange, tender history of the Christmas stocking.

Dickens Didn’t Invent Christmas — But He Changed It Forever

In 1843, a struggling 31-year-old author self-published a little ghost story. It sold out by Christmas Eve — and quietly redefined what Christmas is for.

The Library

What the Cratchits Actually Ate: A Victorian Christmas Dinner, Course by Course

The Poem That Invented the Modern Santa

Why Do We Hang Stockings? The Answer Begins Centuries Before Santa

Dickens Didn’t Invent Christmas — But He Changed It Forever

Get one story behind the season — every week

What the Cratchits Actually Ate: A Victorian Christmas Dinner, Course by Course

The Poem That Invented the Modern Santa

Why Do We Hang Stockings? The Answer Begins Centuries Before Santa

Dickens Didn’t Invent Christmas — But He Changed It Forever