Christmas Card History - A Holiday Celebration Through the Mail

Christmas Card History
A Holiday Celebration Through the Mail

It is believed that the first Christmas cards were made in England in the 1800s when students practiced their writing skills by creating Christmas greetings for their parents. Although it is Sir Henry Cole who is credited with creating the first real Christmas card. As the director of London's Victoria and Albert Museum, he found himself too busy one Christmas to compose individual greetings for his friends and commissioned artist John Calcott Horsley to illustrate a card. It consisted of three panels with the illustration of a family enjoying Christmas festivities and with the message "A Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to You".

The first cards were lighographed and hand colored and they were printed on stiff cardboard. But, by the 1850s improvements in printing techniques allowed cards to be produced inexpensively. At first the designs were simple depicting landscapes, seascapes, florals and animals. In the 1850s red breasted robins first appeared on Christmas cards as did the St. Nicholas. It was also around this time that mistletoe and holly were first used on a Christmas card. These Christmas cards came in a variety of sizes, shapes and verses. They ranged from square, rectangular, oval, to circular, with others in the shape of bells, shoes and fans. The verse on the card was a poem, a carol, or a simple sentiment. Just as varied as their shapes and verses, so were the materials used for Christmas cards. Besides paper, they also used satin, silk, brocade, with ribbon, lace and embroidery.

But as technology advanced there where many new subjects depicted. By the 1860s popular designs were Christmas feasts and church bells, and in the 1890s Christmas trees began appearing on the Christmas cards. It was also around this same time that religious cards began to appear with scenes of snow angels, cherubs and manger scenes.

Even though Christmas greeting cards were first sent in the 1840s in Britain, it wasn't until the 1860s that the greeting card business was established. Initially only the upper class sent cards due to the cost of postage, but with the passage of the Postal Act of 1870 the practice of sending Christmas cards was made available to more people. Their popularity grew and so did the sales. By the 1880s sales figures were in the millions.

It wasn't until Louis Prang of Boston introduced a line of cards in 1875 that Christmas cards became widely used in the United States. That first year they were such a success that he could not meet the demand. This resulted in Prang becoming known as the father of the American Christmas card. His cards were so popular that he dominated the market until 1890. But with the popularity of greeting cards, the market was flooded with inferior and inexpensive cards. Prang tried for several years to compete, but became frustrated and abandoned the business in the early 1890s. At the peak of his career, Prang was printing over five million cards a year.

Like so much about the Christmas holidays that we celebrate, the Christmas card has become a part of our traditions. They give us the opportunity to let people know that we are thinking of them. Perhaps, they also bring joy to those who receive them.

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