Jingle Bells

Jingle bells, jingle bells,
Jingle all the way.
Oh! what fun it is to ride
In a one-horse open sleigh. 

You’ll likely hear this song sometime this year.

Jingle bells are so-named because the small ball-bearing inside the bent metal sphere makes a jingling sound, especially when they are strung together as in the photograph below. 

The Benton County Historical Society’s not only has jingle bells in its collection but also has a one-horse sleigh on display in its Corvallis Museum. 

This sleigh from the 1860s is one of 26 which Reuben Kiger maintained in his livery stable for winter-time rentals. Sleighs moved quietly over the snow so having jingle bells attached to the moving horse was a way of letting people know it was approaching. 

The couple was riding in a one-horse open sleigh to Seaside (not over open fields) but still had a strap of jingle bells around the horse. I hope they were having fun. 

Seaside, Oregon, "Turnaround"
on Broadway St. at the Promenade

And I hope you have a happy holiday season. 

By Martha Fraundorf, Volunteer for Benton County Historical Society, Philomath, Oregon