The History of the Christmas Tree
As soon as Thanksgiving is over, you’re probably ready to put up the Christmas tree and start decorating for the holiday season. But how much do you know about these beloved evergreens and how they came to be one of the most popular Christmas traditions in the world? Read on to learn the history of the Christmas tree.
The Origin of the Christmas Tree
There are mixed accounts on precisely when Christmas trees became an official hallmark of winter. One thing we know for certain is that there are records dating back hundreds of years that talk about using evergreens to celebrate the season. Rural church records from England suggest that holly and ivy were used to decorate as early as the 15th and 16th centuries.
It may sound obvious, but one of the reasons people believe this tradition began is because evergreens remain fresh and fragrant despite the cold weather. If you can’t decorate with flowers or grow many colorful plants during the chilly months, why not turn to something like a pine or spruce tree instead?
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Even though we know that people have long loved the aesthetics of evergreens, it’s tough to pin down when the Christmas tree tradition officially began. According to some, Martin Luther, the leader of the Protestant Reformation, believed pine trees served as reminders of God’s goodness. Others suggest that St. Boniface, from the eighth century, intervened in pagan sacrifices by chopping down an oak tree and seeing a fir tree grow in its place.
Chances are that these are both fun stories to share but not necessarily the reasons why Christmas trees grew in popularity around the world. Most people agree that their origin can be traced back to 16th-century Germany when Christians started to decorate trees inside their homes. Legend also has it that Martin Luther is credited with the idea of adding lights to the trees to symbolize the stars in the night sky.
Christmas Trees in America
While the origins of Christmas trees are rooted in Christianity, many of the early American settlers held off on adopting the tradition because they thought it stemmed from pagan beliefs. For quite some time, Puritans in New England faced potential punishment if they celebrated or decorated for Christmas at home because it was believed the holiday was so sacred that it could only be celebrated with a church service.
This strict approach to the season carried on until the country saw an influx of Irish and German immigrants, who brought their Christmas decorating traditions with them even though they went against the Puritan views at the time.
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The first record of a Christmas tree on display in America was in the 1830s by a group of German settlers in Pennsylvania. These settlers were among the first in the new world to commemorate the holiday with decorated trees. It wasn’t until a newspaper with a sketch of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert standing around their own Christmas tree circulated the country in 1848 that Americans embraced the tradition in their own homes.
Decorating the Tree
As you might expect, Christmas tree decorations also date back to Germany. But while the Europeans continued to decorate their trees with more natural and rustic items like nuts, berries and cookies, Americans began to create and use homemade ornaments in the early 20th century.
Once electricity arrived on the scene, Christmas lights grew in popularity, too. Since you could previously only light up the tree using candles, this discouraged a lot of public tree displays. But now town squares across the country started to place decorated trees in public gathering places.
Whether you choose to visit one of the many Christmas tree farms across the United States to cut down your own magnificent centerpiece or opt for a faux tree that keeps for years to come, now you know a little more about how this beloved tradition began and made its way to America.