Christmas Village, 1962
Jerry Green, chairman of the Ogden Retail Merchant’s Committee, dreamed up the idea of Christmas Village in late 1961. He and his wife, Maxine, began sketching plans for decorations and shared their ideas with other business leaders. The Chamber of Commerce and city and county officials became excited by the project and quickly committed funds.
Daisy Whitlock, owner of the Bartlett Motor Co. building, donated the space and hundreds of volunteers began creating the buildings and figures that would transform the municipal park into a Christmas wonderland. The large “Missile Tree” decorated with 8,000 color-changing lights became one of the most famous decorations.
The first lighting of Christmas Village occurred November 23, 1962, after a half hour parade down Washington Blvd. Custom mechanical figures rolled peppermint in the candy store, hammered new toys in the toy factory, and sorted letters to Santa in the post office.
The highlight of Christmas Village was Santa’s castle, which Maxine patterned after the Disneyland castle. Children lined up outside to visit the jolly man; demand was so high in the first week that several hours were added to his schedule. 35,000 children visited Santa that first holiday season.
Over 100,000 visitors toured Christmas Village that first year. D. Keith Hunt, executive vice president of the Chamber of Commerce, called it “one of the biggest attractions in Ogden’s history.” Today Christmas Village remains a favorite community tradition.
Merle Allen, Jim Patterson, Dick Pizza and Jerry Green