Chuckin' chickens a Christmas tradition in small Alabama town

A drugstore in Madison, Alabama, continued a 100-year-old Christmas tradition of throwing chickens from the roof on Saturday.

Hughes' Drugstore began the tradition now known as "Christmas Capers" during the Great Depression, when live chickens were thrown from a roof.

Each bird had a small prize or gift certificate attached to it that could be redeemed at the drugstore. The bird itself was also a prize, as those lucky enough to catch one of the flying chickens would also have something for Christmas dinner.

The Christmas Capers tradition was revived a few years ago, this time with rubber chickens thrown instead of live ones. There are still prizes attached to the chickens along with the same joy and excitement for all those present.

Larry Anderson, co-owner of Hughes Drugstore, described the tradition he inheirited.

"He would get on top of the drugstore, and throw off hand fulls of change and pencils and various things, but he would also have live chickens with, basically, a gift certificate on the chickens. And as they would soar over the crowd, the crowd would follow them. If they got the chicken they got the gift certificate.

"There will be some rubber chickens this time – not live chickens anymore. There will be some rubber chickens with some pretty significant prizes on there. We end up with moon pies and candy and some other stuff to add to the chickens. So it's quite an interesting thing."