In 1752 England adopted the Gregorian calendar to replace the inaccurate Julian. The result was a loss of 12 days; September 2 was followed by September 14 and Christmas day moved from January 6 to December 25. It must have taken some time for the change to filter over to the American colonies and then to gradually penetrate the frontier. But eventually, as people began adopting the new calendar changes, the former celebration day was called “Old Christmas Morning” to reference what used to be. This change must have happened at different times over the years in different locations. Tunes by this name are found in West Virginia and Kentucky; many are different, seemingly unrelated to the other, others are different but of the same root stock. This setting is from Sherman Hammons, nephew to the earlier mentioned Edden Hammons, from whom he learned many of his tunes. He played fiddle, banjo and sang in an archaic style, having learned tunes from Black banjoist Charlie Spriggs and other Hammons family members. He tuned his fiddle two or more steps low in a manner not uncommon to senior source fiddlers who have found no reason to change antiquated ways.
