Troy Credited with First Publishing of Classic Christmas Favorite

These Christmas songs and poems are almost ingrained in our heads, especially this time of year. Have you ever thought where they came from? Would you be surprised to know that one of the originals came from Troy, NY?

You know it, chances are you can't get through the Christmas season without hearing "'Twas the Night Before Christmas" at least once. Surprisingly enough that classic Christmas poem is from right here in the Capital Region.

According to the Troy Record (whose predecessor The Troy Sentinel is credited to have published it first), the poem was written by New Yorker Clement Clarke Moore in 1822. A family friend found the poem and sent it anonymously to The Troy Sentinel where it was published in 1823.

Legend says that Clement Clarke Moore wrote the poem while on a shopping trip via sleigh where he came into contact with a Dutch handyman as well as the historical Saint Nicholas, as written on Wikipedia. There are many things in this poem that have now become instantly associated with Santa Claus and it all started in Troy.