The first celebration of Christmas in Dunedin might not have played out how you might expect.
While the Presbyterian Scots avoided celebrating the "pagan festival" in any way, many of the settlement's Catholic and Anglican residents marked the day with a huge communal meal at one of the city's first hotels.
That was until a group of American whalers stationed in the Otago Harbour took offence to a British Naval ditty.
In a series of videos Toitū Otago Settlers Museum curator Sean Brosnahan shares the stories of Otago and Dunedin's past.
In the seventh episode Brosnahan shares the story of the city's first hotels and how the early settlers celebrated Christmas for the first time in their new home in 1848.
For more Toitū to You: Curator's Corner visit the museum's YouTube channel by clicking here.
You can check out more videos and interviews from the Otago Daily Times by clicking here.
