Christmas Caroling Booklets from Days of Yore

Have you ever seen a postcard-esque scene with a family gathered together singing in a lovely four-part harmony? That is just some fabled relic of the past right? Not quite. I am pleased to say that betwixt myself, my husband, and his parents we have a quartet and we actually do enjoy sitting together to sing out a joyous, "Wassail!" or two. Last week we celebrated Christmas together and did just that, but not without an interesting surprise. My mother-in-law hails from Massachusetts,  just outside of Boston, and she has a small collection of the most wonderful caroling booklets from the John Hancock Insurance Company. The tiny lithograph booklets have a copyright date from 1954, they outline a lovely four-part SATB harmony, and each printed carol includes an original author, date, and editor. Along with being overjoyed to participate in such a bucolic family scene, the 20th-century musicology at my fingertips was just lovely. If you would like your own copy the John Hancock Christmas Carols booklet, you can purchase them on Amazon here :http://www.amazon.com/Hancock-Insurance-Christmas-Carols-Booklet/dp/B001I5TQSI, or to simply download the sheet music this Christmas you can find them archived here: https://archive.org/details/ChristmasCarolsJohnHancockCo