Old customs

I remember that Maybelle! In today's world it's probably deemed far too unhygienic to give it to the baby!

My children all had their palms crossed with silver as it was called by various relatives.

Don't remember silver coins, but my mother (orig. from Co. Durham) maintained that you should take a present of a wooden spoon on a first visit to someone who'd moved house. She always did this but we never came across anyone in Kent who'd ever heard of it so none of us carried it on.

It was always done here, can’t remember when this tradition stopped

we've always done this in the west of Scotland and when the baby was christened we gave a christening piece,two biscuits sandwiched with butter or jam and a greaseproof paper wrapped coin in the middle.A silver coin.If the baby was a girl the christening piece went to the first boy you met on the way to church if a boy the first girl .We did it with ours and all our GC .Its good to keep old traditions alive

I like that one paddyann.

We here in Central Scotland have always done this too and I still do. It may be old fashioned but that's how traditions keep going in my opinion. I used to tuck it under the covers of the pram however just hand it over to the mum now as I know a lot of young mums have a fear of anyone touching their newborns.

This was a custom in the NE where I grew up too. It was unusual if a new mother came back from an outing with her new baby not to have lots of silver coins in the pram having first been pressed onto the baby's hand.
It's sad how these old customs fade away and become forgotten, or as Brunette says maybe seen as an unwelcome intrusion these days.

Think it all depends of age of person giving out silver coins. I had my DGS1 in the playpark where he lives only last year when he was 1 and a lady walking her dog whom we didn't know gave him a pound coin for his bank. I was quite taken aback really as he wasn't a 'new baby' but she insisted on it. I thanked her so much and DD put it in his bank. Just lovely thoughts and actions some people have.

I remember my mum doing this for my friend's first baby 40+ years ago.
I believe my nan did it too but she died before my children were born so not done for mine.

As the thread title is old customs can I ask did anyone have a chimney sweep turn up at their wedding ? I arranged this as a suprise for DD 10 yrs ago, people were confused and asked who the tramp was !!

I have to say ninathenana no chimneysweep at any weddings I've been to. Is this perhaps a local custom?

I used to wheel my baby daughter out in her pram in Rossendale Lancashire, we would come home with many pound coins for her piggy bank. It was 1983.

I've heard of chimney sweeps being lucky, my brother-in-law had one turn up for photos at his wedding (a long time ago now) We also used to rush down to the local church whenever there was a wedding when we were young, for the pennies thrown out of the wedding car as they drove off.

My parents always gave a half-crown to a new baby, and always put it in their hand.

My mother always cracked a ginger snap biscuit into 3 on her elbow before eating and threw salt over her shoulder.I'll probably remember some more.

Always silver coins for DD in 1975 - 'cross her palm with silver'. Only one person did this for DGS and as someone else said, it was given to us for his piggy bank rather than 'crossing his palm'.
I bought a small metal chimney sweep for DD's wedding bouquet so I knew they were lucky but never seen a real life one at a wedding unfortunately ?

The tradition of giving a silver coin to a new baby went on in my days as a mother too. But people slipped it under the pram mattress.
I wonder if it has anything to do with the biblical redemption of the firstborn? A ceremony where a silver coin is given to the priest. Still goes on now.
Another one is the "churching" of women, which also has biblical roots. Does that still go on?

Putting a magpie feather next to cot will mean a new sibling will soon follow

I used to have a coal fire, and my aunts would always visit when the chimney sweep was booked.
Just shake his hand for luck !

When we had an extension built 20 years ago the builder put a 10p coin on one of the rafters. He said this was supposed to bring good luck.

I remember the churching tradition Fennel a woman was considered unclean after childbirth until she had been churched. Not sure what was actually involved though.

We still do the Christening piece, but it's no longer a sixpence due to inflation..
Older members of our church often put a £1 coin into DGD's hand.
Here, you don't see the scramble for the pennies from the wedding car, any longer.
Health and safety ?

Have never heard of the custom of giving babies coins, is this purely a Scottish custom?

Chimney sweeps ( or a man dressed as one) at weddings for the photos rings a bell, although have never seen it done.