Carols and candles and stories and wreath-making — Christmas was in the air Saturday morning as Fort Vancouver hosted its annual holiday event in the stockade.
Everything appeared just like it was in 1845, although those horseless carriages carrying visitors would have been an odd sight.
The rain pounded the fort often and early, but that didn’t deter the thousand-plus visitors who took refuge within its walls before noon.
“Much warmer this year,” said one re-enactor in the old Hudson’s Bay Company headquarters. “Last year, the river froze over and we were able to ice skate on it and play curling.”
The Madrigal Singers were filling the adjoining dining room with songs familiar and forgotten.
“I saw three ships come sailing in …”
They sang across a table as the dim candlelight bore a reminder to the easily overlooked luxuries of modern life.
“Did you bring any furs?” a re-enactor asked at the trading post.
“No,” a young visitor answered.
“Well, how are you going to buy food to last the year?”
Kids, cameras and umbrellas were a common sight as families made their way from one building to the next — stories near the stores, blacksmiths fanning the flames.
“For us, it’s all about showing how people of the past celebrated these events,” said acting chief ranger Bob Cromwell. “It lets us engage with people of the past, and compare how we do things today.”
Aside from trips to the mall and peppermint lattes, much of the holiday tradition hasn’t changed. And Fort Vancouver’s festival is becoming a tradition itself.
This is the 10th consecutive year Jenn Pribil has come to the Christmas at Fort Vancouver event.
“The rain didn’t slow us down,” she said. “Everybody’s moving inside for activities more.”
Her sons Kyam — who liked the stories best — and Ronin — fond of the blacksmith shop — were full of Christmas cheer despite the damp conditions in the middle of the stockade, where history hung like mistletoe.
