Christmas Cards Through the Ages
The Christmas cards tradition began in 1843 by Sir Henry Cole of England.
As legend has it, Sir Henry Cole had too many customers to hand compose Christmas greetings to, so, he enlisted artist John Calcott Horsley to create a card onto which he had typeset “A Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to You”. He imprinted one thousand cards. Presently, only twelve remain. Within time, sending Christmas cards caught on and became tradition.
In the late 1800’s and early 1900’s, Kate Greenaway, a successful childrens writer, created some of the most popular Christmas cards.She often designed cards with different fabrics and fringe. Some were even elaborate pop-ups featuring skaters and tiny mangers.
It was not until 1875 in the United States that Christmas cards were available to the masses. In that year, Louis Prang, a German immigrant began producing them in his publishing shop in Boston. BeforeUntil to that time, Americans imported Christmas cards from England. Prang went out of business in the 1890’s when foreign printers imprinted cheaper cards.Still, Prang is known as the father of the American Christmas card.
Technical advances in card publishing during World War I was spurred by competition among card publishers.
The invention of color lithography during America’s Depression in the 1930’s completely put new life into the industry.
The studio card, which used humor as an element of the card, originated in the 1950’s.
The 1990’s saw the introduction of the e-card, an electronic version of a greeting card sent via e-mail.
Christmas cards today are available in many formats to appeal to the masses. From traditional and religious Christmas cards to cards with jokes, there is something for everyone. In fact, the industry has evolved so much that there is a card for virtually any event, or “non-event.” Still, Christmas remains the highest ranking of the card-selling holidays.
For some people, Christmas cards are a way to keep in touch in an otherwise hectic life; a way to say, “Hi, I’m still here!” While the Christmas card is changing from one decade to the next, the sentiment is the same: “Merry Christmas!”
