A snowed-in 1920s Thanksgiving

The Webb City Sentinel, Nov. 30, 1923

Webb City celebrated a royal indoor Thanksgiving by staying at home during the record big snowstorm of years, and those inclined to grumble blamed it all on C. E. Matthews for predicting the impossible by recalling the day before through the Sentinel, that in 1880 Jasper County had six inches of Thanksgiving snow.

It came with a gusto, from midnight till sun-down, covering Webb City with an ideal Christmas-tide snowfall, and there was nothing to it but to stick to the home fireside. As a result the Webb City-Carthage football game was happily called off till maybe next week some time. Hunting for rabbits was deferred till the slush of a bright sunshine. The Thanksgiving auto ride gave way to sledding by the kiddies on the sidewalk, and snowmen were built galore. No Sentinel was issued, and all hands kept the holiday religiously perforce, the snow – even the drugstores closing all afternoon, as did other stores, the banks, the post office, etc., all day.

Praying people are not to be denied, however, and the union Thanksgiving service at the Methodist Church drew a goodly attendance to hear Rev. S. G. Keys speak. The Salvation Army gave its free Thanksgiving dinner to about a hundred needy people.