In December 1945, trains across the United States carried servicemen home for the first time in years. The Santa Fe line ran eastward through Kansas, slowing at the curve on the northwest edge of Neosho Rapids — a small town where the Irwin family was already getting ready to celebrate Christmas, weeks ahead of December 25th.
James Ferdinand Irwin and his wife had seven children, four grandchildren, two sons-in-law, and one extra guest: Fred Andrews, a Navy veteran and Mrs. Irwin’s brother. With so many of the family’s men freshly back from military service, the family chose December 9th as their Christmas Day, the one date everyone could gather under the same roof. The mood was joyful, though not without grief. Betty Roush, the oldest Irwin daughter, attended without her husband — Lieutenant Clyde Roush, a B-29 bombardier, had been reported missing over Japan.
The celebration followed the family’s long-standing traditions, starting with the hunt. The men headed out and returned with freshly shot rabbits and a cedar tree cut from the land.
While the men hunted, the women prepared the feast. A goose was at the center of the Christmas dinner, and James Irwin handled the task himself — selecting, killing, and plucking the bird with family members watching close by.
Once the goose was ready, Mrs. Irwin took it to the kitchen to stuff and roast it for the dinner table.
The rabbit skins from the morning hunt were stretched and hung in the tool shed — a practical habit for a farming family that wasted nothing.
Inside the house, the freshly cut cedar tree went up in the living room. Family members gathered around to hang ornaments and decorations, filling the space with the smell of pine and the noise of a household reunited after years apart.
Carol singing around the piano brought the whole family together. From left to right in the lineup stood Mr. Irwin, Scotty, Carolyn, Betty Roush, Jim, Myra Lee Love, Jack, Jeanne Haney, Mrs. Irwin, Jeff Haney, Levern Love, and little Iris Beth Love.
The younger mothers in the family — Jeanne Haney, Myra Lee Love, and Betty Roush — tended to their babies during the gathering, bottle-feeding the newest generation of Irwins amid the celebration.
Fred Andrews, Mrs. Irwin’s Navy brother, dressed up as Santa Claus to hand out gifts to the grandchildren. The children were frightened by his costume, though the adults gathered around the tree watched with clear amusement.
Once Santa had made his rounds, the grandchildren tore into their presents — a chaotic and noisy moment that stood in sharp contrast to the years of wartime separation the family had endured.
The family closed out their Christmas Day by sitting down together for the holiday dinner. Clockwise from the left, the table seated Fred Andrews, Mr. Irwin, Jim, an unidentified guest, Jeanne, Joe, Levern Love, Myra Lee, Jack, another unidentified guest, Mrs. Irwin, and Scotty — a full table after years with too many empty chairs.
