A brief history of Christmas tree decorations and traditions

It was Prince Albert, husband of Queen Victoria, who installed a Christmas tree at Windsor Castle in the late 1840s. But there is a report of Christmas trees that appeared in the United States years before royalty install your tree.

Located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, Charles Follen, a professor at Harvard College, in 1835 is recognized for having placed a Christmas tree in his house. It is said that he cut the top off a fir tree and decorated it with paper decorations and candles for his 3-year-old son.

Twelve years later, August Imgard, a tailor in Wooster, Ohio, receives credit for the first decorated Christmas tree. His first tree was placed in Imgard’s house, it was placed on a turntable and, as the tree slowly turned, a hidden music box played a Christmas song. August was born in the Bavarian Mountains in Germany and came to America and moved to Ohio before he was 20 years old. He is also credited with introducing the first candy canes to Wooster, OH, back in 1847. They were known as sugar “thieves.” The first historical reference to the candy cane in America dates back to 1847, when he decorated his home Christmas tree with candy canes for his nieces and nephews. Another half century passed before someone added stripes to the sticks. If you saw Christmas cards produced before 1900, they represent plain white canes. Stripes did not appear on sticks in pictures / cards until the early 20th century.

“The American Confectioners Association officially recognizes Imgard as the first to put candy canes on a Christmas tree.”

August Mother’s recipe for a cookie called Kuchens was used to bake these cookies that were hung from the tree as decorations, each decorated with brown sugar. Extras were baked for sandwiches when guests arrived. Another ornament on the tree at the time was golden walnuts; inside their shells were messages of warm greetings and poems.

Imgard is buried in Wooster Cemetery, where a decorated tree is placed on his grave every Christmas.

According to the National Christmas Tree Association, Americans bought more than 40 million Christmas trees last year. Additionally, approximately 51 million artificial trees are removed from attics or garages each year, totaling nearly 91 million reasons to believe that putting up a Christmas tree is an American tradition that isn’t going away anytime soon.

The first skirts of the Christmas tree weren’t decorative at all. They were usually mats placed under trees to catch drips of sap and wax.

Over time, the tree skirts were crafted to add a decorative touch to the tree. Today, you can find commercially made and homemade tree skirts in every color or theme imaginable, from sports themes for die-hard fans to chic. The materials used can vary from any material imaginable; including lace, velvet or satin. And with the materials made today, even cotton prints have become extraordinary. They may have metallic threads woven into the material or sparkles throughout.

A Christmas tree skirt is a personal choice that each and every one of us must make. You can choose traditional prints, non-traditional themed designs; animal prints, southwestern designs, embroidery or embroidery. It can be made to match your mood or your decor. They are as individual as each of us.