Of Christmas Trees - Christmas

Canada German settlers migrated to Canada from the United States in the 1700s. They brought with them many of the things associated with Christmas we cherish today—Advent calendars, gingerbread houses, cookies—and Christmas trees. When Queen Victoria’s German husband, Prince Albert, put up a Christmas tree at Windsor Castle in 1848, the Christmas tree became a tradition throughout England, the United States, and Canada. Mexico In most Mexican homes the principal holiday adornment is el Nacimiento (Nativity scene). However, a decorated Christmas tree may be incorporated in the Nacimiento or set up elsewhere in the home. Britain The Norway spruce is the traditional species used to decorate homes in Britain. Greenland Christmas trees are imported, as no trees live this far north. Guatemala The Christmas tree has joined the “Nacimiento” (Nativity scene) as a popular ornament because of the large German population in Guatemala. South Africa Christmas is a summer holiday in South Africa.

The Father of Electric Christmas Tree Lights For centuries, revelers relied on wax candles to illuminate their Christmas trees. But when Edward Hibberd Johnson introduced electric Christmas tree lights in 1882, he not only added flash and color to a Yuletide tradition, he saved lives in the process. As Christmas approached in the waning days of 1882, Edward Hibberd Johnson joined his fellow New Yorkers in decking the halls. Then as now, Yuletide traditions ran deep, and the 36-year-old once again undertook the annual ritual of decorating the parlor of his Manhattan home with a majestic evergreen. Nearly three years had passed since Thomas Edison demonstrated the first practical light bulb, and few people were better acquainted with the emerging electrical technology than Johnson, the Wizard of Menlo Park’s trusted business associate. Now at Christmastime, Johnson prepared to make some history of his own. Johnson’s electrically lit tree was revolutionary—literally.