Incredible Photos From Christmas Past Prove The Holidays Are Timeless
Christmas has been celebrated for centuries and many traditions have followed us into the present day. This collection of photos from Christmas past will show you that while things like technology have advanced, there is a certain air to the Christmas spirit that has remained the same, no matter what decade. From Salvation Army Santas to presidents in the White House, you'll see that Christmas is always filled with love, goodwill, and fun. See just how fun with a certain parade disaster from the 1940s!
Ronald Reagan Said That Christmas Is A State Of Mind
This picture hails from Christmas of 1970 when then-California Governor Ronald Reagan celebrated the holidays with his wife, Nancy, and children Patti and Ron Jr. Eleven years later when he was president, Reagan had this to say to our nation: "On Christmas, we celebrate the birth of Christ with prayer, feasting, and great merriment. But, most of all, we experience it in our hearts.
For, more than just a day, Christmas is a state of mind. It is found throughout the year whenever faith overcomes doubt, hope conquers despair and love triumphs over hate. It is present when men of any creed bring love and understanding to the hearts of their fellow man."
"O Christmas Tree, O Christmas Tree"
This is a Living Christmas Tree Choir put on by the Peoples Church in Toronto, Canada. 150 people made up the live tree, which you can see is as tall as the ceiling. The four-day service in 1972 attracted more than 13,000 people to the caroling celebration, but the concept of a living Christmas tree is not that unique.
Every Christmas season, many churches put on similar presentations using their own choirs. People gather around to listen to their favorite Christmas carols and it is all the more festive since its as if the glorious oversized tree is singing to you.
A Child Sleeps In A Bomb Shelter During Christmastime
Here is a child sleeping in an English wartime Anderson shelter in December 1940. That year, the first German air attack of WWII took place in London and was followed by many more in the country. English citizens responded by building Anderson shelters, which were half buried into the ground to help shield them from unearthed debris when bomb blasts occurred.
As you can see, although they were living in terror of being bombed during the war, parents still tried to keep their children's spirits alive by decorating the shelters that Christmas season.
The Kennedys Can't Wait To Open Presents
Here you can see President John F. Kennedy and family celebrating Christmas the year of 1962 at the White House. JFK and First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy sit with their children and are accompanied by Jaqueline's little sister Caroline Radziwill and her family. 1962 was the year that Jacqueline Kennedy gave a televised tour of the White House.
Though she showed off the renovations that she made to the presidential home, she emphasized how important it was for her to preserve the historical integrity of the space. This was one of the only two Christmases that the Kennedy's spent within the White House walls.
Soldiers Found A Way To Celebrate Christmas While At War
These soldiers were still in Vietnam on Christmas of 1967. Here, they've set up a small Christmas tree to celebrate at their position near Dak To, just days after the North Vietnamese Army made a massive assault on the area. These soldiers would definitely rather be celebrating at home with their families in the States, but this tiny Christmas set up while at war had to do that year.
Millions of Americans served their country throughout the Vietnam War and of those, thousands have lost their lives while at war. Not everyone got to return home to celebrate other Christmases with their families and there are still some that are rumored to be missing in action.
They've Been Ringing Their Bells For Decades
In this picture from 1910, a man dressed as Santa Claus is helping the Salvation Army promote a free Christmas dinner that is being held to benefit the "25,000 poor" at the Grand Central Palace in New York City. You can see the kettle pot underneath the sign, which is so distinctive of Salvation Army Santas today.
Captain Joseph McFee actually started the concept in 1891, over distress about finding a way to fund a dinner for the destitute and poverty-stricken population of San Francisco that year. Every holiday season to this day, you will see Salvation Army volunteers ringing their bells to receive donations to help the less fortunate.
Parades Were Always A Great Way To Ring In The Holidays
Here we have women in Santa costumes aboard a convertible in 1969. Taken in New York, they are presumably getting ready for a Christmas parade or possibly even the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade! The Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade is cited as the World's Largest Parade and is a three-hour event that has been televised since 1952 (although it has been a tradition since 1924).
Americans all across the nation have the parade on television as they prepare the day's Thanksgiving meal and love it especially for the fact that it rings in the Christmas season.
The Big Balloon Float Fail Of 1941
This picture from 1941 depicts the Santa Claus balloon collapsing during the annual Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade that year. At the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, it's customary for each parade to end with Santa being welcomed into Herald Square to signify the start of the Christmas season. The Santa balloon was introduced just two years before this disaster happened.
Because the full details of what's going on in this photo are unclear, we hope that this was before the parade even started since that would have been pretty embarrassing! But this only goes to show you that despite the lack of technology back then, people still worked to make the parade as magical as ever.
Family Reunions Were Always The Best During Christmas
This picture from 1961 depicts a British sailor greeting his wife and children in England as he returns just in time for the holidays. This sailor is returning from the HMS Victorious, which saw frequent action during World War II.
While many sailors remained on the ship for the holidays, some were fortunate enough to get back on land to see their family just in time for Christmas and New Years. This is still prevalent in today's society as many soldiers are deployed all across the world and separated from their families for long periods of time.
You Can Never Forget The Christmas Tree
This is a picture of children carrying home trees and mistletoe in December of 1923. Speaking of trees, this was the same year that the first national Christmas tree was lit by then-President Calvin Coolidge on the White House grounds. It was the first community Christmas tree at the White House and it was also the first tree to be decorated with electric lights, using a strand of 2,500 red, white, and green bulbs.
Coolidge started a tradition of having an outdoor Christmas tree for the public to enjoy and the tree was commemorated with a choir and a band that played Christmas carols.
Elizabeth II Making Her First Christmas Broadcast
This is Queen Elizabeth II making her first Christmas broadcast to her nation on Christmas 1952. The Queen was only 26 when she ascended the throne and became the ruler of all the British Empire. In her first-ever Christmas Message, Queen Elizabeth promised to uphold the tradition passed on to her by her father and grandfather, while thanking her people for their loyalty and support during the first months of her reign.
She said, "At my Coronation next June, I shall dedicate myself anew to your service.. pray that God may give me wisdom and strength to carry out the solemn promises I shall be making and that I may faithfully serve Him and you, all the days of my life."
Christmas With The Fitzgeralds
This is an undated picture of author F. Scott Fitzgerald, his wife Zelda, and their daughter Frances "Scottie" Fitzgerald doing a kick step in front of their family Christmas tree one year. Zelda and Scott famously had a tumultuous relationship and many attribute it to Zelda's wild nature.
As such, she wasn't much of a homemaker but apparently still managed to provide a comfortable life for their daughter. Scottie, like her father, became a writer and was urged by him to do well in school so that she wouldn't repeat his same failures. You can bet that the Fitzgeralds had an interesting Christmas, to say the least.
Girls Scouts Make Christmas Stockings For Kids
This 1968 picture depicts Girl Scouts and their leader filling Christmas Stockings that were to go to children in Head Start programs. The Girl Scouts organization was founded to help young girls form friendships and develop useful skills that would benefit them in the future.
The organization often holds events to help give back to the community and you can bet that this is definitely something done around the holidays when it is needed most. It's great to see that organizations like the Girl Scouts have taken the initiative to help out those who are underprivileged, such as Head Start kids.
A Christmas Party For Homeless Pets
In 1958, The Denver Post shared this picture of a scene from King Soopers Annual Christmas Party for Homeless Pets. On the left, Mrs. J.K. Malo, a board member of the Dumb Friends League Animal Shelter, holds a furry friend next to Lloyd J. King, who was the president of King Soopers at the time. People brought pet food, cat litter, pet toys, and flea powder to the event that was held to benefit the thousands of pets that were abandoned monthly.
Today, pet homelessness is still a rampant problem and causes overcrowding in shelters where many pets have to spend the holidays alone.
Even Back Then There Were Many Pets That Still Needed Homes
Here is another picture from King Sooper's Annual Christmas Party for Homeless Pets. The local Dumb Friends League Animal Shelter told The Denver Post in 1967 that the grocery chain annually donates up to three tons of food to the shelter. Over the years, many shelters across the nation have held campaigns and adoption drives in an effort to find homes for their cats and dogs for the holidays.
Unfortunately, Huffington Post reported in 2013 that shelters often see a surge in given up pets around the holidays, due to poor planning and the inability to care for a pet with holiday expenses.
Everyone Helped Out When It Came To The Holidays
This picture is from 1959 and depicts an assembly line of gift wrappers, who've successfully prepared hundreds of gifts. Employees of the Gates Rubber Company in Colorado at the time would wrap gifts to give away to children at the company's annual Christmas party and they have done so since 1941.
Many companies will hold annual Christmas parties as a way to give gifts to the employee's children or to benefit local underprivileged children and you can see that this has been going on for decades. This only goes to show that the necessity of gift giving is essential to make sure everyone feels loved during the holidays.
Preparing For The Big Christmas Feast
This is a picture from 1930 showing women holding turkeys that were soon to be transformed into Christmas Eve dinner that year. Having turkey at Christmas dinners might have been started by people in the United Kingdom, who've been serving up turkeys at Christmas since the 1950s when the bird has become more widely available.
Before turkeys, people opted for roast swan, pheasants, or peacocks for their Chrismas meals. A real luxury in the past was to have a roasted boar's head that was festively decorated with holly and fruit. We have turkey at Thanksgiving in the U.S., which might be why ham is a more popular option at Christmas for Americans.
George Bush Had A Touching Christmas Message For The Nation
This is 41st President of the United States, the first George Bush, reading to his grandchildren on Christmas Eve of 1991. In his Christmas address to the nation that year, Bush said, "Americans have the talent and power to do anything. And so when history remembers the Christmas, 1991, let it remember that we promise to bring God's light to our brothers and sisters in need.
Let it record that on Christmas, 1991, this Nation united to ask God for peace on Earth, goodwill to all. And let it record that a new age of goodness and hope began here and now. God bless you, and may your Christmas be bright with love."
The Holidays Are A Time For Ice Skating
Here we have a few young boys enjoying a favorite winter pastime: ice skating. This picture was taken in in the 1920s, but ice skating has long been enjoyed for more than 3,000 years! Although most people today might take a visit to their local ice rink or to wherever one is set up for the holidays, people back then needed only to head out to a nearby pond or river where the water had frozen over.
Hopefully, the ice was solid and thick enough so that nobody fell through into the cold water!
Santa Has Been Scaring Babies For As Long As Anyone Can Remember
As you can see, babies have been terrified of meeting Santa Claus as early as 1969. Of course, the most logical explanation is that no baby likes being thrust into the arms of a stranger, especially one with excessive white facial hair and whose clothes are all red.
Pediatrician Ari Brown, M.D. tells Parents.com, "Remember, little children haven't spent the last 30 years watching Miracle on 34th Street and waiting for Santa to leave presents on Chrismas morning. This is a whole new ballgame for them. They might see Santa simply as a stranger in red."
