Christmas Trees Brighten the Season

 It is hard to imagine not having a tree decorated in our homes at Christmastime. Most everyone today remembers their childhood and the pleasures of trimming the tree. When my children were young, our friends and relatives had a good laugh when they walked in our house and saw our work of art. I felt this was one time of the year the children should participate in the festivities. First of all I struggled with their help to put the tree in its holder. I must admit, it wasn’t always straight, the way it had grown in the forest, but it held up during its time with us.

 Then the children carried on from there. Oh, there were lots of arguments, but there were also lots of laughs. No one ever agreed on exactly the right place to hang the ornaments. But in the end, they were all proud of their Christmas tree.

Have you ever wondered, like me, where the tradition of having a decorated tree placed in a prominent place in our homes at Christmastime originated? I found in my research that not too much has been written about its beginnings. We do know one thing for certain: The German settlers in America brought the tradition with them from their homeland to the New World.

 The first account of such a tree, in Germany, is described in a diary written by an unknown author who visited Strasbourg in 1605, according to Phillip V. Snyder in his book on Christmas trees. In the diary, the visitor wrote about fir trees placed in the home and decorated with roses, flat wafers, fruit and candy.

 It is believed that there is a religious symbol associated with bringing a green tree into the home and decorating it in such a manner. From the study of primitive cultures, it was learned that trees remaining green in the winter were thought to have godlike powers that protected their homes, and helped bring good crops to their seemingly barren land.

 When Christianity gradually overcame the pagan religions, people in the northern part of Europe continued to decorate the evergreen trees at Christmastime. The rose had always been a symbol for the Virgin Mary, and it is believed that the flat wafers, described in the writings of the traveler, related to the “host,” the symbol for Christ in communion. The tree decorated with the flat wafer and roses became known as the Christbaum. There is an account of candles being fastened to the branches of a decorated tree as early as 1708. And in 1801, Prince Albert, Queen Victoria’s husband who came from Germany, made the tradition popular in England. However, the custom had been known and practiced by the royal family for half a century. The custom didn’t last long in England, as it had in Germany and later in America.

 German settlers introduced the Christmas tree to America during the 19th century. Most of the immigrants brought their ornaments with them from Germany, and for many years the only ornaments used were imported from Germany.

 There was quite a controversy over the idea of a Christmas tree among Americans not of German descent. Critics disliked its pagan origin.

 The first picture shown in America of the Christmas tree was printed in a women’s magazine in 1850. The engraver of Godey’s Lady’s Book copied the picture of Prince Albert of England’s tree that had been printed earlier in the London News. He made the picture seem more American by removing a few royal details and by changing the look of many of the ornaments.

 The people in America introduced the idea of the floor-to-ceiling Christmas tree soon after they had followed the German custom of having a small tree that could be placed on top of a table. In the early years, Americans decorated their trees very simply, with strings of cranberries and popcorn, pine cones, cookies and candy. But by 1870, we were importing glass ornaments from Germany. And 10 years after that, ornaments were made of other material besides glass—wax, tinsel, silver and gilt paper, and cardboard.

 The custom grew slowly in America, but since the early part of the 20th century, the Christmas tree has been a part of American life. Every home now has a Christmas tree, and thanks to Thomas A. Edison we have replaced the dangerous candle on the tree with small electric light bulbs that brighten the trees during the festive occasion.