Decorating with Christmas ornaments first began in the 1500's in
Germany. Evergreens were first being used in homes and decorated with ornaments
made of small white wafers or pastries cut into stars, angels, hearts and flowers.
Later on in the 1600's walnuts, painted eggshells, sweet candies, paper roses
and lighted candles were being used as decorations.
Christmas was not celebrated in the United States of America until the early
1800's. Christmas ornaments were not yet known to Americans and were originally
brought to America by the Hessians, which were German Mercenaries, during the
Revolutionary War.
In 1880, F.W. Woolworth started selling German made Christmas ornaments in
his five and dime stores. By 1890, he was selling over 25 million dollars worth
of ornaments to American consumers. German glass ornaments soon became the most
favorite of all decorations that were purchased.
Other Christmas ornaments were hand made by families to hang on the tree. These
ornaments were chains of popcorn, cookies, sweet candies, paper garlands and
paper cut outs of angels, lambs, and hearts.
Most German-made Christmas ornaments were made from hand-blown glass and hand-cast
lead. Later on the ornaments became more extravagant looking and more expensive.
They were made with silk and threads, chenille and tinsel made them shine and
glisten in the lights. Some were made of spun glass and shaped into precious
angels and butterflies to be hung on the Christmas tree.
In 1939, the start of World War II, Hallmark, an America company, officially
had a business that specialized in Christmas ornaments. The new invention of
machinery enabled this company to produce more than 2,000 ornaments a minute.
Hallmark is a world renowned company that is highly known for their keepsake
Christmas ornaments that reflect the events, past and present, for everyone
to enjoy and treasure forever.
Get a Letter from Santa Claus
Delight your child this Christmas with a personalized letter from Santa Claus. Santa personalizes each letter with your child's name, best friend's name (optional), hometown, and state.
