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[[File:MedfordMA PaulCurtisHouse.jpg|alt=Paul Curtis House in Medford, MA|thumb|"[[Grandfather's House]]" also known as the Paul Curtis House in Medford, MA.]]
{{about||the play with a similar title|Over the River and Through the Woods}} ▼{{Use mdy dates|date=November 2018}}
'''"The New-England Boy's Song about Christmas Day"''',<ref name="poetryfoundation.org">[http://www.poetryfoundation.org/poem/173198 "The New-England Boy's Song about Christmas Day" at Poetry Foundation]</ref><ref>[http://learning.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/11/21/poetry-pairing-the-new-england-boys-song-about-Christmas-day/?_r=0 Doyne, Shannon. "Poetry Pairing | ‘The New-England Boy’s Song about Christmas’", ''New York Times'', November 21, 2013]</ref> also known as '''"Over the River and Through the Wood"''', is a [[Christmas (United States)|Christmas]] poem by [[Lydia Maria Child]],<ref name="wayhist">{{cite web|url=http://wayhistsoc.home.comcast.net/~wayhistsoc/whs/Lydia_Maria_Child/lydia_maria_child.htm |title=Lydia Maria Child|publisher= Wayland Historical Society|accessdate=November 20, 2014|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20150930230945/http://wayhistsoc.home.comcast.net/~wayhistsoc/whs/Lydia_Maria_Child/lydia_maria_child.htm|archivedate=2015-09-30}}</ref> originally published in 1844 in ''Flowers for Children'', ''Volume 2''.<ref name="child">{{cite web|url=http://www.bostonliteraryhistory.com/chapter-4/lydia-maria-child-%E2%80%9C-new-england-boy%E2%80%99s-song-about-Christmas-day%E2%80%9D-flowers-children-ii|title=Lydia Maria Child and the Development of Children’s Literature|year=2012|publisher=Boston College: bostonliteraryhistory,com|accessdate=27 September 2015|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20131126063159/http://www.bostonliteraryhistory.com/chapter-4/lydia-maria-child-%E2%80%9C-new-england-boy%E2%80%99s-song-about-Christmas-day%E2%80%9D-flowers-children-ii|archivedate=2013-11-26|dead-url=no}}</ref> ▼▲{{ about|for|the play with a similar title|Over the River and Through the Woods}}
{{short description|1844 poem by Lydia Maria Child}}
▲"''' "The New-England Boy's Song about ChristmasThanksgiving Day "''' ",<ref name="poetryfoundation.org"> [{{cite web |url = http://www.poetryfoundation.org/poem/173198 "|title = The New-England Boy's Song about ChristmasThanksgiving Day " at|publisher = Poetry Foundation ] }}</ref><ref> [{{cite news |url = http://learning.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/11/21/poetry-pairing-the-new-england-boys-song-about- Christmasthanksgiving-day/?_r=0 |last = Doyne , |first = Shannon . "|department = Poetry Pairing | title ‘The= 'The New-England Boy’sBoy's Song about Christmas’",Thanksgiving Day' ' |work = The New York Times '', |date = November 21, 2013 ] }}</ref> also known as "''' "Over the River and Through the Wood"Woods''' ", <ref name="wayhist"/> is a [[ ChristmasThanksgiving (United States)| ChristmasThanksgiving]] poem by [[Lydia Maria Child]],<ref name="wayhist">{{cite web |url = http://wayhistsoc.home.comcast.net/~wayhistsoc/whs/Lydia_Maria_Child/lydia_maria_child.htm |title = Lydia Maria Child |publisher = Wayland Historical Society | accessdateaccess-date = November 20, 2014 | archiveurlarchive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20150930230945/http://wayhistsoc.home.comcast.net/~wayhistsoc/whs/Lydia_Maria_Child/lydia_maria_child.htm | archivedate=2015-09archive- date = September 30 , 2015 }}</ref> originally published in 1844 in ''Flowers for Children'', ''Volume 2 ''.<ref name="child">{{cite web |url = http://www.bostonliteraryhistory.com/chapter-4/lydia-maria-child-%E2%80%9C-new-england-boy%E2%80%99s-song-about- Christmasthanksgiving-day%E2%80%9D-flowers-children-ii |title = Lydia Maria Child and the Development of Children’sChildren's Literature |year = 2012 |publisher = Boston College: bostonliteraryhistory,com | accessdateaccess-date = 27 September 27, 2015 | archiveurlarchive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20131126063159/http://www.bostonliteraryhistory.com/chapter-4/lydia-maria-child-%E2%80%9C-new-england-boy%E2%80%99s-song-about- Christmasthanksgiving-day%E2%80%9D-flowers-children-ii | archivedate=2013-11archive- date = November 26 , 2013 | dead-url -status = no live }}</ref>
Although many people sing "to grand'''mothergrandmother's''' house we go,", the author's original editionwords were "to grandfather's house we go".<ref name="child" /> showsMoreover, thatin themodern author'sAmerican wordsEnglish, weremost "topeople use the word grand''woods'father's rather than ''wood'' housein reference to a forest, and sing the song accordingly.<ref name="wayhist"/>
==Background==
The poem was originally published as "The New-England Boy's Song about ChristmasThanksgiving Day" in Child's ''Flowers for Children''.<ref>{{cite book |last = Karcher, |first = Carolyn L. ''|title = The First Woman in the Republic: A Cultural Biography of Lydia Maria Child''. |location = Durham, NC: |publisher = Duke University Press, |year = 1994: |page = 620. ISBN|isbn = 0822321637 }}</ref> It celebrates the author's childhood memories of visiting her [[Grandfathergrandfather's house (said to be the [[Paul Curtis House]]). Lydia Maria Child was a novelist, journalist, teacher, and poet who wrote extensively about the need to eliminate slavery.<ref name="lewis">{{cite web |url = http://womenshistory.about.com/od/childlydiamaria/a/lydiamariachild.htm |title = Lydia Maria Child: Reformer, Speaker and Writer |last = Lewis |first = Jone Johnson |work = Women's History |publisher = about.com |accessdateaccess-date =27 November 27, 2013 }}</ref>
The poem was eventually set to a tune by an unknown composer. The song version is sometimes presented with lines about [[Christmas]], rather than ChristmasThanksgiving. For instance, the line "Hurrah for ChristmasThanksgiving Day!" becomes "Hurrah for Christmas Day!". As a [[Christmas song]], it has been recorded as "A Merry Christmas at Grandmother's". Although the modern ChristmasThanksgiving holiday is not always associated with snow (snow in late November occasionally occurs in the northern states and is rare at best elsewhere in the United States), [[New England]] in the early 19th century was enduring the [[Little Ice Age]], a colder era with earlier winters.<ref>{{cite web |title = Timeline Middle Ages and Early Modern Period - Environmental History Resources: The Little Ice Age (ca. 13001300–1870) - 1870)|url = http://www.eh-resources.org/timeline/timeline_lia.html |website = Environmental History Resources |archiveurlarchive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20150208141137/http://www.eh-resources.org/timeline/timeline_lia.html |archivedatearchive-date = February 8, 2015-02-08 |dead-url-status =no live }}</ref>
==Poem==
The original piece had twelve stanzas, though only four are typically included in the song. One stanza has the word that ends in the M sound rhyme with the word that ends in the N sound.
:{{quote|<poem>Over the river, and through the wood,
:To Grandfather's house we go;
:the horse knows the way to carry the sleigh
:through the white and drifted snow.
:Over the river, and through the wood,
:to Grandfather's house away!
:We would not stop for doll or top,
:for 'tis ChristmasThanksgiving Day.
:Over the river, and through the wood—
:oh, how the wind does blow!
:It stings the toes and bites the nose
:as over the ground we go.
:Over the river, and through the wood—
:and straight through the barnyard gate,
:We seem to go extremely slow,
:it is so hard to wait!
:Over the river, and through the wood—
:When Grandmother seessaw us come,
:She will say, "O, dear, the children are here,
:bring a pie for everyone."
:Over the river, and through the wood—
:now Grandmother's cap I spy!
:Hurrah for the fun! Is the pudding done?
:Hurrah for the pumpkin pie!</poem>}}
The following verses appear in a "long version":
:{{quote|<poem>Over the river, and through the wood,
:with a clear blue winter sky,
:The dogs do bark, and children hark,
:as we go jingling by.
:Over the river, and through the wood,
:to have a first-rate play.
:Hear the bells ring, "Ting-a-ling-ding!",
:Hurrah for ChristmasThanksgiving Day!
:Over the river, and through the wood,
:no matter for winds that blow;
:Or if we get the sleigh upset
:into a bank of snow
:Over the river, and through the wood,
:to see little John and Ann;
:We will kiss them all, and play snow-ball
:and stay as long as we can.
:Over the river, and through the wood,
:trot fast, my dapple-gray!
:Spring over the ground like a hunting-hound!
:For 'tis ChristmasThanksgiving Day.
:Over the river, and through the wood,
:Old Jowler hears our bells.
:He shakes his pow, with a loud bow-wow,<ref name="poetryfoundation.org"/>
:and thus the news he tells.</poem>}}
==Legacy==
A children's book, ''Over the River—A Turkey's Tale'', recasts the poem as a humorous tale of a family of [[turkey (bird)|turkey]]s on their way to a vegetarian ChristmasThanksgiving; the book was written by Derek Anderson, and published by [[Simon & Schuster]] in 2005.<ref>{{cite book |first = Derek |last = Anderson |title = Over the River—A Turkey's Tale |publisher = Simon & Schuster |year = 2005 |ISBNisbn = 978-0-689-87635-6 |url-access = registration |url = https://archive.org/details/overriverturkeys00ande }}</ref>
It is also the title of a young adult, historical fiction novel about a teenage pioneer crossing the wilderness with her young siblings in tow. The book, which features young adult heroine Caroline Darley, was written by author Brynna Williamson and was published by Stones in Clay Publishing<ref>{{ cite book |first = Brynna |last = Williamson |title = Over the River and Through the Woods |publisher = Stones in Clay publishing |year = 2020 | isbn = 978-1733709323 |url-access = registration |url = https://stonesinclay.com/cgi-bin/stonesinclay.exe/home }}</ref> in 2020.
==References==
{{Reflist|2}}
==External links==
* [http://womenshistory.about.com/od/childlydiamaria/a/over_the_river.htm Over the River and Through the Wood] at ''[[About.com]]'' (updated October 5, 2015; archived December 20, 2005 at [https://web.archive.org/web/20051220094320/http://womenshistory.about.com/od/childlydiamaria/a/over_the_river.htm])
{{ChristmasThanksgiving}}
[[Category:1844 poems]]
[[Category:1844 songs]]
[[Category:ChristmasChildren's songs]]
[[Category:American Christmas songs]]
[[Category:Songs based on poems]]
[[Category:Thanksgiving songs]]
[[Category:Works by Lydia Maria Child]]
[[Category:Songs about nature]]
[[Category:Traditional children's songs]]
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