Hark the Herald Glen Rock Sings

At the stroke of midnight on Christmas morn, the Glen Rock Carolers gather in the town square of Glen Rock, Pa. (pop. 1,809), to begin a celebration of song that takes them throughout the town and into the dawn of the day. Onlookers also gather in the square to hear the sounds of yuletide songs and watch as the carolers carry on a 158-year-old town tradition.

"The square is packed," says Darryl Engler, music director for the Glen Rock Carolers. "There must be a thousand or more people. They come from all over, and every year it gets bigger."

The holiday tradition began on Christmas in 1848, when four newly arrived settlers grew homesick for the carol singing they left behind in England. With the help of a bassoon player, the four men walked to each of the town’s 12 homes, singing the same four carols at each stop.

Today, the carolers—all male, ranging in age from 10 to 87—still perform those original four songs, along with 10 new songs.

"Since 1848, not wars, illness or weather has caused a break in the tradition," says Engler, 58. "We’re the custodians of this tradition, and we take it very seriously."

The singing group has 50 official "Caped Carolers," who sport the Dickens-style caped coats and enjoy the privilege of voting on everything from awarding honorary memberships to filling a vacancy. Sixteen associate members, dressed in dark blue capes lined with red silk, accompany their singing brethren, practicing the songs, learning the tradition and waiting for an opening with the Caped Carolers.

"Someone has to die or resign to take in a new member," says Engler, who has been with the group 34 years—13 singing and 21 directing.

In 1997, when White House officials extended an invitation for only 20 of the carolers to perform, the Caped Carolers voted to graciously decline.

During the group’s annual trek through Glen Rock, a town crier walks ahead of the singers handing out fresh roasted peanuts and announcing, "The carolers are coming! The carolers are coming!"

Some families follow the carolers through the streets. Many host all-night parties, gathering on their porches or at their windows to watch and listen as the carolers stop at each street light to sing. James Kroh, 87, who will mark his 71st Christmas caroling on the streets of Glen Rock this year, recalls listening to the singers as a child.

"I remember being a baby in my mother’s arms, wrapped in a blanket as she held me up to the window to hear the carolers," says Kroh, whose family is a direct descendant of original caroler Mark Radcliffe. "I always knew I’d be a caroler one day."

Kroh’s brother Mark, who died in April, would have celebrated his 76th year with the group. Still the family legacy continues on as both of the Kroh brothers have sons, grandsons, and even a great-grandson involved with the group.

The carolers usually make three stops along the way for food, drink and warmth. The home of Don Swartz and his wife, Janice Dean, is one of their rest stops.

"We moved here 20 years ago, and no one told us about the carolers," says Swartz, recalling his introduction to the tradition. "Here it was the early hours of Christmas morning when we heard voices. When we got to our balcony, we were stunned. We had never heard or seen anything like it."

While much of America is waking at dawn to greet Christmas morning, many in Glen Rock are just falling into bed. And although aching legs and cold feet come with the caroling tradition, the carolers wouldn’t have it any other way.

"I have nothing better to do. Literally!" Engler says. "Truly, there isn’t anything better in the whole world than being part of this tradition."

Tracy Leinberger-Leonardi is a freelance writer in Elkton, Md.

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