Olde Richmond at Christmas: Miller & Rhoads windows & the "real" Santa

Mom's memories of the Miller & Rhoads Christmas windows and the "real" Santa

My previous post was a remembrance as a child of the Christmas windows of downtown Richmond in years past and visits to Miller & Rhoads to see Santa. Last Christmas I asked my mother to flesh out the memories for me and this is what she wrote.

The "real Santa" was at Miller & Rhoads and their 7th floor was Santa Land. Do you remember that the line of children moved up and waited for Santa by the Snow Queen who sat to Santa's right? She greeted every boy and girl and chatted with them - and always asked each one his or her name. Santa had an earpiece on and as a child was leaving him, the Snow Queen would say the next child's name and tell each one to go over and talk with Santa ... so the name of each child was passed on to Santa by her.

He would hold his arms out and say something like, "Ho, ho, ho, if it isn't Lynn & Gail!" The children could not believe Santa remembered all of their names! Even the parents were enamored with how well it all was done. That was one of the things that made Miller & Rhoads' Santa so special and no other store could ever compete with it. The expressions on the faces of the children when Santa called out their names was priceless and even we parents were thrilled.

After we visited with Santa, we went to the Tea Room on the 5th floor and stood in another long line to be able to eat lunch with Santa and the Snow Queen (and elves). They had a special table up on the runway that the models used for their fashion shows -- so all of the children could see them while they were eating.

The children could hardly eat for waiting on Santa. Then, everyone had a piece of Rudolph's cake for dessert. All the while, Eddie Weaver was playing Christmas songs on the organ. It was a very festive time and they always had crowds of people. Ruth [my mother's sister who passed away in 1997; she never had children of her own] and I looked forward to going to see Santa every year, just as much as any child. We went before you all were born and watched the children talking with Santa.

Ruth loved Christmas as much as I did and and she never missed a single time going with us. It really was a special occasion for all of us. Ruth always bought the pictures of you all with Santa because they were so expensive we could never have bought them. Besides, you had to pay for them at the time, without seeing them, and they mailed them to you so you never knew what they would look like.

Ruth also paid for us all to have lunch in the Tea Room. If she was talking with someone in the lines near us and they asked the ages of her children, she would tell them - without batting an eye - so they thought you all belonged to her. She used to say she appreciated it when I let her claim you all because it made her feel like a mother, too.

The "Legendary Santa" from 1957 to 1966 was Hansford Rowe II, who graduated from John Marshall High School with Cal. He later married Ales Rowe, who graduated from Thomas Dale High School a year later with me. They had two sons, Hansford III, called "Hanny" and Blake. I just talked with Ales to be sure I have my facts right before I answered your email.

She said Blake was 6 or 7 when he figured out that his dad was Santa. They were standing in the line and could hear Hansford talking to the children when Blake told Ales, "I believe Santa is Daddy because it sounds like his voice." Ales told him all children thought Santa sounded like their fathers. Later, when they were closer, Blake had her lean down and told her he was sure it was Daddy. She admitted it was but told him not to say a word. When he got up to Hansford and was sitting on his lap, Hansford (who, of course, did not know that Blake had figured it all out) asked him what kind of boy he had been that year and Blake said, "PERFECT!"

Hansford Rowe II became an actor and played at Barksdale Theatre, Virginia Museum Theatre, Swift Creek Mill, etc., before going to New York where he had some off-Broadway parts. He later went to California, and Cal and I have seen him in several movies. He is bald headed, not terribly tall, and usually played the part of the butler. Son, Hanny, also was in New York with his father because he wanted to be an actor, too. When Hansford stopped playing the Santa part at Miller & Rhoads, his older brother Dan took over as the Legendary Santa and he STILL does it - at the Children's Museum in Richmond.

Miller & Rhoads had the most beautiful windows at Christmas, and Thalhimers was next. Other shops along the streets decorated their windows but they never came close to the two big stores. On the Grace Street side of the stores, people would spend hours on a nice day standing at the windows and walking up and down the streets.

Christmas music was piped out onto the streets around M&R and Thalhimers. Some of the windows were full of animated people and things, especially M&R's windows. Their big window at the corner of 6th and Grace, which faced both streets, always had Santa's workshop and it was beautiful. It truly looked like the North Pole and was a beehive of activity. There was so much to see and so such continuous activity one could stand there for an hour. Elves were making things, painting, carrying, etc. ... all kinds of things going on and continuous movement.

It was absolutely fascinating because at that time, not many people had seen that sort of thing. M&R's window facing 5th Street and Grace Street was full of trains and that, too, was wonderful! We loved watching all of those trains going in every direction - and I still love trains.

Downtown Richmond was beautiful in those days and was absolutely fantastic at Christimas time! Before you all came along, Ruth and I would dress up, with our hats and gloves, and go downtown on Saturdays. We would spend the whole day shopping and lunch, then would head home about 4 o'clock. Those were fun times and I have such wonderful memories of them and of times after you three came along when we would all go with Ruth to do things and see the sights. We are all so fortunate to have had her in our lives. We did not have much money but those were the best years of my life!

The importance of family comes out in our remembrances. Thanks, Mom, for the memories.

One of Santa's Snow Queens for 20 years has written a book about her experience in Santaland ... Christmas at Miller & Rhoads: Memoirs of a Snow Queen.