It was mind-numbingly cold this past Thursday evening in Sussex, but Main Street was alight with decorations, people, song and horses. The Sussex Downtown Business Association hosted an Old Tyme Christmas evening. It coincided with the first major snowstorm.
But, like us, many people battled through the snow and went to the old train station in the middle of town. There they found carollers and a table with cookies, hot cider and hot chocolate. Santa was circulating, as were ladies in Dickensian dresses and gentlemen in top hats and tails.
The staging area for the horse-drawn wagons. A gas light that lent old-timey atmosphere and much needed warmth while you waited for the horses. Two teams from nearby stables – Mountain View’s Clydesdales and Hornbrook’s Percherons – took their wagonloads of people along Main Street. Every store, restaurant and business was decorated, music coming out their doors. The sidewalks were crowded with people, and most of them stopped to watch and wave as the horses and wagon passed by. Drivers slowed or stopped to give the horses the right of way.
Takes a downtown to make it festive
It took a lot of people to make this work. Two cars from local automotive businesses followed the wagons on each journey. A local business owner handed out tickets for the ride, another collected them. Ladies in long fancy dresses wrangled the horses into place, others stowed passengers on board. On the train platform, ladies in large bonnets handed out hot drinks and cookies and elegantly attired men and women sang carols. We recognized a few – local business owners, staff and people from the arts and culture centre.
A full evening of this, and it was all free of charge. Main Street, which always looks beautiful with its Christmas decorations, looked especially bright and sparkly. Maybe it was the bonhomie of the evening – or the horses. Whatever, it made us happy to live near a town where so many people chip in to create magic. Thank you all!
(My photographs do not do justice to the spectacle. My camera and I were far too cold to get the right settings and hold still enough.)
