Elders who were children in the 1930s at Turtle Mountain remembered Midnight Mass as the main celebration of Christmas. Families traveled by sleigh to the church, with children bundled under blankets. Most people were Catholic, their roots tracing back to the late 1700s fur trade when Indigenous women married French and Scottish workers. Over generations, families inherited traditions, including cuisine, music, dance, singing, and the unique trade language "Cree" or "Michif," which blended Indigenous verb phrases with English, French, or Indigenous nouns. People greeted one another with "La Bun Noel" as they headed home.
By the 1930s, some families knew about Santa Claus, thanks to the small income from Works Progress Administration jobs. If stockings were hung, children might find an apple, orange, peanuts, or hard candy, along with small toys like dolls or tin drums. Mary Jane Davis remembered receiving dried apples and prunes as a treat, and at six years old, she was thrilled to get a real orange for the first time.
Ida Rose Allard recalled that when she was fourteen, she found a face powder compact in her stocking and realized there was no Santa. Some elders also remembered an old belief that the Devil was chained by a single hair, and if everyone didn’t pray at midnight on Christmas Eve, "all hell would break loose." Younger children might stay home with someone while the parents and older children attended Midnight Mass. Elma Wilkie remembered praying hard by her bed until her parents returned safely.
At the Gourneau farm, the family was snowed in for the winter. Living in a log cabin, the only surprise the children got on Christmas was the arrival of their new sister, Rita. She later recalled finding a wool stocking filled with Brazil nuts, hard candy, and peanuts.
Rita and others remembered that the main holiday event was New Year, celebrated from January 1 to King's Day, January 6. In December, as soon as it was cold enough, families butchered a pig or heifer and spent weeks preparing food. Pat Gourneau ground pork and beef for "bullets," his specialty meatballs, and Mrs. Gourneau made raisin and juneberry pies with a homemade lard crust.
Feasting, dancing, and fiddle music were enjoyed in homes, and people traveled by sleigh to visit elders and wish them "La Bun Annee." A custom recalled by Elma Wilkie was that the last person to arrive would find a cow or pig's tail pinned to their back.
Dakota Datebook by Lise Erdrich
Sources:
- Lise Erdrich. Turtle Mountain Elders Interviews, 1985-87. Tape Recording.
- Lise Croonenberghs. Day In, Day Out: Women's Lives in North Dakota. Pages 59-69. University of North Dakota Press, 1989.
