So if you wonder why we do the things we do around New Year's, it turns out we owe a lot of it to our Victorian forebears.

🔍Discover more secrets and tales. We can't wait to welcome you to our next free open day in 2026 — visit claytonhall.org

In some areas, Christmas greenery was sometimes replaced by bowls of snowdrops (named after earrings and not snowflakes), which flowered around Candlemas. This was known as the 'white purification' as the snowdrops were thought to purify the house ready for the New Year.

In larger homes such as Clayton Hall, Christmas greenery such as holly and ivy may have been kept up until Candlemas on 1st February— the final day to remove all signs of Christmas—otherwise it was believed that there would be a death in the family before the following Christmas.

Victorians cleaned their homes before New Year, clearing rubbish and ashes for a fresh start. Festivities lasted until Twelfth Night (6th January), marking the Feast of Epiphany when the Wise Men reached Bethlehem. Decorations were removed then to ensure good luck for the year.

Phantom Balls were popular with the Victorian middle classes, blending mysticism with entertainment. Guests dressed as ghosts, demons, and spirits, held séances, read tea leaves, and predicted what the new year would bring, indulging their fascination with the supernatural.

Superstitious Victorians also believed warding off spirits ensured a prosperous year. On New Year's Eve in the 1800s, towns echoed with drums as young men 'wassailed' (Saxon for 'good health'), making noise to banish spirits whilst church bells rang at midnight.

'First Foot' is a Hogmanay tradition where the first to enter a home after midnight brings gifts like black bun, shortbread, coal, salt, and whiskey to symbolize fortune. A dark-haired male visitor was seen as lucky, while blonde hair was thought to bring trouble...

The tradition of singing Auld Lang Syne began at Hogmanay parties. Written as a poem by Scottish poet Robert Burns in 1788 and meaning "for old times’ sake," it was first sung in Scotland and soon became a New Year’s staple across the British Isles.

Queen Victoria loved all things Scottish, including Hogmanay, Scotland’s biggest celebration of the year. Like today, Victorians gathered on 31st December to bid farewell to the old year and welcome the new, embracing the festive spirit of New Year’s Eve with family and friends.

🔍 Seymour Road online exhibiton (with thanks to Wise Owl Trust for their support): claytonhall.org/seymourroad/

🙏Many thanks to Manchester City Council and Warden Construction Ltd for their continued help and support!

We also hold accounts from residents who fought to improve their neighbourhoods throughout the post-industrial years, in the run up to the Commonwealth Games and into the present day.

A citywide effort like this will help bring even more East Mancunian voices to light.

We hold a rich collection of eyewitness testimony and stories, available to browse during our free open days, from people who worked at Bradford Pit, Clayton Aniline and other local employers.

East Manchester was once the beating heart of industrial Manchester and, after years of decline, the 2002 Commonwealth Games marked a turning point whose impact is still felt today.

East Manchester has a wealth of social history that deserves to be heard more widely. The recent exhibition about Seymour Road school, part of which was also on display at Manchester Central Library, showed just how powerful these stories are.

With the help of Cllr Tom Robinson, we're looking to begin a citywide collection of social history, to be shared and accessible to everyone.

A huge thank you to Manchester City Council and local Councillors, and the brilliant Warden Construction Ltd for all their help and support in securing the Hall’s future.

This is a historical moment for Clayton Hall and this investment will safeguard the Hall for future generations to come. (2/2)