Christmas in the 1970s

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A vintage photo of the giant Santa Claus and Christmas billboard at Heiner’s Bakery.

Photo courtesy David Smith

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On the eve of Christmas 2024, let’s turn back the calendar
 and take a glimpse at what Christmas was like
 in the Huntington of 50 or so years ago.

  • In the 1970s, the Huntington Mall was yet to be built,
     and so downtown was still the city’s undisputed
     retail epicenter. So, with gift lists in hand,
     crowds of people would set off to see
     what presents they could find in
     the many stores along 3rd
     and 4th avenues.

    •

    All the shops, of course, were decked out in their best
     holiday decor, but none to match the elaborate
     show windows and gaily decorated aisles
     to be seen at the Anderson-Newcomb
     Co., a mecca for Christmas
     shoppers for decades    .

              And no Christmas shopping expedition was
     complete without visiting the city’s
     five-and-dime stores, perfect
     places to find last-minute
     stocking stuffers                

    What’s that? You say all that holiday shopping
     has left you hungry and tired. So, how about
     catching a nice lunch at Bailey’s Cafeteria?

    All the decades of The Herald-Dispatch can be viewed on
     microfilm. Scrolling through some of the Christmas
     pages from the 1970s certainly shows how
     shopping then was dramatically different
     from shopping today. But looking back
     shows that some important things
     were much the same
     then as now.

    Just as today, the music of the old, familiar carols filled the air in
     the 1970s. And then there was Santa Claus: It seemed like Santa
     was just about everywhere in town. Youngsters could sit
     on his lap at a number of stores. A giant-sized Santa
     could be seen at Heiner’s Bakery on Washington
     Avenue. And at night, a floodlighted version
     of the old gent welcomed visitors at rival
    Mootz Bakery on 5th Avenue
     at 20th Street.

    And, too, in the 1970s Santa made a very special visit
     to the Westmoreland Fire Station. There he had
     treats for the youngsters who came to see him,
     but the treats only went to the small-fry
     who bought cans of food to
     go to needy families.

    Yes, Christmas may differ a bit from year to year,
     but in the final analysis it’s always the same
     season of love and caring. Merry Christmas
     to you and yours from this humble scribe.

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    Note:  This Article and picture appeared in the Herald-Dispatch Newspaper on Dec, 24, 2024.

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