The late Tom Flowers, who grew up on Hoopers Island during the 1920s and 1930s, ranks as a legendary figure in Dorchester County, Md. One of the many hats he wore in life was that of storyteller–he would make the rounds of local civic groups and events, sharing tales from days gone by. He collected some of his stories into a book, “Shore Folklore.”
Here is one story about Christmas on the island:
Tom Flowers
“The words are hard to come by to tell you about the fun we had as kids on the island at Christmastime. It may be hard to believe today, but I never saw a Christmas tree until Christmas morning for all the years of my youth. Like magic, the Christmas tree and all of its trimmings came sometime during Christmas Eve night.
“… [Many years later] I asked my wife how it was that our Christmas tree could hardly last the holiday while the cedar trees [that my family had when I was a boy] lasted until spring. It was often late in March when we took down the Christmas tree. She immediately knew the answer:
“‘You always had it up in the front room where there was no heat except at Christmas time.’
“Christmas was the only time when I ever saw oranges and sugar-pressed candy. We always had a pageant in our church at Christmastime. Miss Rhoda Parker, Miss Minnie Wolfe, and Mrs. Irving Cannon along with Aunt Lillie, who played the piano, gave all the children parts for the program. Candles burned; the people packed the pews and stood around the walls; the big Christmas tree gleamed and glistened with tinsel, icicles, and ornaments; the old chunk stove was red with heat.
“When I was three years old, I remember that I was asked to recite a little verse. My father and mother sat with me, suffering much more anxiety than I [did about my big moment] At last it was my turn. We had gone over it hundreds of times. I knew [what I was supposed to say], but when I got up there, there was so much to see from the decorated platform. Momma said:
“‘Are you going to say it?’
“I said:
“‘I’m looking!’
Hoopers Island church scene
“And this brought down the church because they all could see that [looking around the church was] exactly what I was doing. When I was satisfied, I straightened up and looked at everybody and said:
“‘Christmas is coming, the goose is getting fat. Please put a penny in the old man’s hat.’
“The congregation beamed. My father got that silly look of pride that parents get when their offspring perform. Then they took up the collection.
“As important as all this was, it was not the highlight of the evening. At just the right moment, sleigh bells rang–and excitement ran high. And then there he was, Santa Claus and his big bag slung over his back. I leaned forward but maintained strong body contact with Momma. [Santa] laughed, he sang, he lifted the little children, he patted the people’s heads. Happiness was everywhere.
“One by one he called our names and we went forward to receive our box of sugar-pressed candy and an orange. Even I, at three, gathered up enough courage to go forward. He hugged me into his fluffy, white beard and whispered Santa Claus secrets to me. I was too excited to remember a single word; I just knew that he liked me and that was all that mattered.
Aerial view, Middle Hoopers Island
“I can not let this opportunity pass without telling you that it would be hard to measure the influence of that old church and [its] Sunday school on my life. …. In Sunday school, we moved around that old church through such great teachers as Miss Alverta Phillips, Miss Normi Phillips, Miss Agnes Parks, Raymond Simmons, Calvert Cannon, and oh so many others. They were like the ‘Rock of Gibraltar’ in their faith and in their cherished beliefs.”
And there you have it, a sweet little Christmas story of a Chesapeake community in days gone by. Mr. Flowers died in 2005. May he rest in peace, knowing that folks are still enjoying his stories!
–posted by Jim Duffy for Whimbrel Creations LLC/Secrets of the Eastern Shore in Dec. 2025. Thank your for spending time with this story–and on this site.
