Many of the holiday stories recalled by neighborhood residents may have been written by Anne Mohrle, who entertained children growing up in our neighborhood from the 1940s to the 1970s with an annual Christmas celebration.
To many children – and adults – she was the Christmas Lady.
Mohrle became the Christmas Lady when she and her husband spent their first Christmas in their home at 7031 Tokalon. Mohrle invited a neighborhood family, the Lincolns, to their home for Yuletide festivities.
Mrs. Lincoln played the piano, her children played the violin, and Mohrle played her guitar. Afterwards, Mohrle told a story.
The Lincoln family spread the word about the gathering, and at the next storytelling session, there were 16 children. After a few years, Mohrle was drawing 40 children. The parties eventually drew 125 children from throughout Dallas who would come to hear Mohrle’s stories.
No invitations were mailed. Word of the storytelling sessions were passed from child to child.
During the parties, Mohrle wore a tiara and gowns she designed herself. She also would pass out bells for all the children to ring while singing “Jingle Bells.”
After exhausting her sources for Christmas stories, Mohrle began writing her own. She also told her stories to community groups and became known as the Christmas Lady. She and her husband published a book of her stories in 1973.
The Christmas Lady stopped telling her stories because of health problems. Kathy Lincoln, who had participated in the annual event since she was three months old, carried on the tradition for a few years. It was stopped when the audience became too large.
A collection of books written by Mohrle and others she collected for storytelling are available for reference in the archives section of the Lakewood Library.
