Celebrating Christmas Through BookmarksbyLauren Roberts
The history of Christmas actually goes back centuries. Both the shortest day and the longest night of the year falls on either December 21 or 22 (Winter Solstice). It was believed by many ancient peoples to occur the sun, a god, became weak and sick as fall progressed into winter. But that day marked the turnaround when the sun god began to get well, the plants would again begin to thrive, and summer would return. It was seen as a time to celebrate light and birth during, ironically, the shortest and darkest days of winter. Because the Winter Solstice is the end of the shortening days and the beginning of the longer ones, it seemed natural to honor the change. Since the people in most areas of Europe slaughtered their cattle (they could not be fed during the winter and the meat would be preserved in the cold), and the harvests, having been completed meant full provisions of food and drink, with little work due to snow and ice, there was time to relax, to feast, to celebrate and to engage in social activities. 
But other responses were forthcoming. In 1819, The Sketchbook of Geoffrey Crayon, Gent., was published by Washington Irving. It was a collection of stories about the celebration of Christmas in an English manor home, and it showed a squire and his peasants enjoying mingling effortlessly, an obvious attempt to promote the idea that the day should be a peaceful, warm-hearted one that allowed those of different class and economic lines to mingle easily. Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol, published in 1843, also emphasized the importance of charity and goodwill among all classes. Both books had powerful impacts on Americans’ views of the day. 
Yet even Nast’s image underwent further refining, this time thanks to soft drink manufacturer, Coca Cola. Their in-house artist, Haddon Sundblom, portrayed Santa, beginning in 1931, as a portly, jolly, grandfatherly figure complete with ruddy complexion, a full white beard and a fur-trimmed coat and cap. Minus the Coke bottle he was originally portrayed with, that Santa is the one we all know today. Today, Santa is found all over leading parents into sometimes convoluted explanations. But in 1881, it was J.W. Parkinson's store in Philadelphia where Kris Kringle arrived via a chimney for the children. The second department store to feature a Santa was in Massachusetts in 1890, and it caught on. By 1900, dozens of American department stores had Santas of their own. From there, various department stores began to sponsor parades featuring Santa, the best known today being the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade. Mrs. Claus finally showed up in 1899 when Katherine Lee Bates (author of the song, America the Beautiful), invented her in a poem. Her depiction has invariably been that of a cheerful portly woman at home in her kitchen. Christmas trees also have a long history. Ancient Egyptians used palms in their winter solstice festivals while the Romans used firs to remember and anticipate the lush green of the coming spring. Germans, from at least 700 AD, would bring an evergreen tree into the house during their festivals, and according to legend, Martin Luther added candles to his tree decorations. In England, Prince Albert, who had married Queen Victoria in 1834, began the tradition of the Christmas tree when he introduced what had been a childhood tradition in his German family, into Windsor Castle for the Christmas of 1841. Newspaper illustrations of the day showing the royal family’s tree decorated with glass ornaments, candles and ribbons excited the British population and the fashionable set in the east coast cities of America. Most Americans found Christmas trees an oddity at first. Though the first record of one on display took place in the 1830s in Pennsylvania (by the German settlers who, as noted above, had long enjoyed them), most others saw them as pagan symbols. Christianity was strong in New England, and Christmas particularly sacred. William Bradford tried to stamp out “the pagan mockery of the observance and even went so far as to penalize any frivolity. And in a particularly stern display, Massachusetts, in 1659, enacted a law making any observance other than a church service marking Christmas a penal offense, a rule which lasted until the nineteenth century. But the Puritanistic attitudes were losing. In the United States F.W. Woodworth unexpectedly made a fortune in the 1880s selling German-made Christmas tree ornaments which he had reluctantly stocked in his five-and-dime stores. Then in 1882 Edward Johnson, a colleague of Thomas Edison, became the first person to light a Christmas tree with electric lights using a string of 80 small bulbs. Candles, lovely but dangerous, were replaced though at first only the wealthy could afford them. But in 1903, the Ever-Ready Company offered the first string of ready-made lights, and decorating trees and houses with strings of multicolored lights became popular early in the twentieth century. Homemade ornaments were also popular. Apples, nuts, marzipan, colored popcorn and berries were all used. Public displays in town squares were popular now that they could stay lighted for long periods of time, and many families had them in their homes as well. At the beginning of the twentieth century, about 20% of American homes had decorated Christmas trees; by the end of it, about 85% had decorated trees. The first American president to put a Christmas tree in the White House was Franklin Pierce in 1856. It continued until 1900 when Theodore Roosevelt interrupted the tradition out of concern over national consumption of evergreen trees. But Woodrow Wilson resumed the tradition in 1913 when he presided over the first national Christmas tree. And in 1923, Calvin Coolidge started the National Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremony, which has become a major national celebration every year since. The only exception was in 1963 when the tree was not lit until December 22, after the national 30-day mourning period for President Kennedy ended. One of the best known trees is at Rockefeller Center in New York City. This tradition dates back to 1931, the height of the Depression. Then it was a small, unadorned tree placed by construction workers at the center of the site. Two years later, another tree was placed there, this time with lights. The largest tree that has ever been on display there was in 1948—a 100-foot tall Norway Spruce that came from Killingworth, Connecticut. Today, the giant annual tree is laden with more than 25,000 lights and is recognized worldwide. History.com offers a page of Tree Trivia from which these facts have been extracted:
The Christmas card then went into hibernation until 1862, when printers Charles Goodall came up with minimalist designs consisting of the words “A Merry Christmas.” They became so popular that in 1871, the first newspaper article asserting that the deluge of cards was delaying “legitimate correspondence” appeared. Their popularity was reinforced when, in 1873, the London Times ran the first ad apologizing for “not sending Christmas cards this year.” By 1880, it was big business and has remained so. Other Christmas traditions revolve around music and food. Hymns, which were originally sung only in church, moved outside and became intermingled with folk music that had a religious theme, though wassailing (drinking) carols and secular themes were also part. The word “carol” derives from the Middle English word “carole” (meaning ring), a ring-dance with song. Early hymns that have become popular carols include “Joy to the World” and “O Come All Ye Faithful.” Early non-religious carols included “Deck the Halls” and “God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen.” The most popular of all, “Silent Night,” was first written as a poem in Germany in 1816 by a young priest named Joseph Mohr who was assigned to an Austrian pilgrimage church. According to Ben Best in The History of Christmas, “the church organ was too rusted to play for the 1818 Midnight Mass so Mohr asked his friend Franz Gruber (a local teacher) to compose a tune. Mohr and Gruber sang the song together, with Gruber playing a guitar. The piece might been forgotten except that a visiting musician took the music and it grew in popularity as it was played throughout Austria & Germany.” Christmas traditional foods depend, of course, on the country. England and American loves turkey and goose. Cranberry sauce came from the American cranberry plant. Ham, another traditional dish, probably originated from the Norse or Roman tradition of eating wild boar. Other foods include mincemeat pie, candy canes (which originated in Germany in the late 1600s, though the red-and-white striped, minted versions were created in 1900). The first Christmas stamp was produced by the Canadian post office in 1898, but it wasn’t until 1937 that the next national stamp was offered by Austria. In the 1950s, Australia and a few other countries began offering their own. The United States didn’t even begin until the 1960s, and they now include stamps for Hanukkah, Eid and Kwanzaa. The modern celebration of Christmas tends to emphasize commercial and other non-religious aspects of the holiday. Depending on one’s choices and point of view, this can be exciting or something to dread. But the idea of shopping days is relatively new. According to Best, “the first advertisements for Christmas gifts in the United States were primarily for children's books. In the 19th century gifts tended to be made by the giver and were practical (e.g., mittens or food), but modern gifts tend to be more frivolous, fun or luxurious . . . The greatest shift from homemade to manufactured Christmas gifts in America occurred between 1880 and 1920, mostly as a result of the ‘industrial revolution’ in manufactured goods. In 1880 retailers began wrapping Christmas presents in decorative paper to emphasize gift status, and this gimmick was very effective in boosting sales.”  
I love this holiday season, but I admit to being relatively immune to the commercial pressure to “buy, buy, buy.” I consider myself fortunate. There are no children to consider. The special people in my life enjoy the same things I do, and appreciate the unusual gifts I seek out year round. I like this bookmark whose front declares: “A Happy, Cheerful Christmas.” And on the inside: “Let it be a comfort to you and a cause for rejoicing that you are Peace with the World and have the Good Will of your fellow Men on this glorious Christmas Day.” I plan to do just that. And to you, our wonderful readers, have a happy day too. No matter what you do or how you believe, make it a day that has some special meaning for YOU. |