19th Century Mummers Terrorized Philadelphia: Wall Street Journal

PHILADELPHIA — The Mummers are a well-known staple in Philadelphia. Each year, groups of mummers participate in a widely-watched and attended parade in the city to honor the old tradition.

But according to a new piece in the Wall Street Journal, Mummers' origins are not as quirky as we've come to know them now.

In the piece "How Capitalism Saved Christmas," Jason Zweig says Mummers began as roving bands of drunken young men who terrorized Philadelphia, Boston, and New York City in the 19th century.

"In the 1800s, at Christmastime in cities like Boston, New York and Philadelphia, gangs of drunk young men, dressed in outrageous disguises, marauded through the nighttime streets, often setting off firecrackers, lighting fires or shooting guns in the air," Zweig writes.

>>>RELATED: See Photos, Videos Of Mummers New Year's Day Protest<<<

Those groups went by a few names, Mummers among them.

According to Zweig, these groups would go house-to-house causing damage to homes and sometimes making their way into homes to steal food and drink.

But it was the introduction of Santa Claus that led Christmas revelers to turn from drunken chaos to shopping for gifts to give their loved ones, Zweig writes.

"Santa Claus was part of a broader movement to domesticate the holiday by creating a warm, comforting family event centered around giving gifts to children," according to Zweig. "Mayors, merchants and the middle class all wanted to get the violent Christmastime gangs off the streets."

Read Zweig's piece here.