A history of the Salvos at Christmas
Christmas 1868 was a turning point for Salvation Army founder William Booth in terms of his focus on the physical needs of the poverty-stricken masses who lived in the East London slums where he was ministering.
On the way home from an early morning church service in Whitechapel on Christmas Day, 1868, the hopelessness and degradation of the area impacted Booth as never before.
Drunken men and women staggered along the dirty streets. Children clothed in rags rummaged through the garbage for scraps of food. Some as young as five wandered around drunk and appeared to be near starving.
Booth tried to rid himself of the hellish sights, sounds and smells as he reached the sanctuary of home, but the images haunted him as he tried to enjoy the singing, games and a Christmas meal with his family.
Finally he could bear it no longer and, pacing the floor, exclaimed, "I'll never spend another Christmas Day like this again. The poor having nothing but the public house, nothing but the public house!"
The following Christmas the Booths and others distributed nearly 300 dinners to starving families, warming the hearts of many
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Salvation Army Christmas hampers
Throughout The Salvation Army's history, distributing hampers has been one of main ways to spread cheer and bring financial relief at Christmas. A Christmas hamper in the early 1900s (pictured right) usually consisted of meat, bread, tea, flour, sugar, raisins, tinned milk, potatoes, butter and fruit.
Today, a Christmas hamper would normally contain tea/coffee, biscuits, canned vegetables and fruit, tinned meat, packets of jelly, plum pudding, bottles of soft drink and Christmas treats like nuts, sweets, pretzels and chocolates.