How Christmas Trees Began

In 1923 president calvin coolidge started the white house s national christmas tree lighting tradition with a 48 foot balsam fir brought to washington d c from vermont.

How christmas trees began. But the germans got it from the romans who got it from the babylonians and the egyptians. The modern christmas tree originated in germany. Legend has it that queen charlotte s compatriot martin luther the religious reformer invented the christmas tree. German protestants are often credited with the first circulation of the christmas tree.

The history of christmas trees goes back to the symbolic use of evergreens in ancient egypt and rome and continues with the german tradition of candlelit christmas trees first brought to america. Christmas trees did begin as a pagan tradition as early as the fourth century c e according to abc news. It wasn t until the 1820s that christmas began gaining popularity in america and the country s first christmas tree reportedly was displayed in the 1830s. The annual ceremony continues today and the tree a blue spruce grown in virginia is now planted on the north side of the ellipse at the white house.

The story behind this year s michigan state capitol christmas tree began 14 years ago. European pagans were largely responsible for dressing their homes with the branches of. One winter s night in 1536 so the story goes luther was walking through a pine forest near his home in wittenberg when he suddenly looked up and saw thousands of stars glinting jewel like among the branches of the trees. An old babylonish fable told of an evergreen tree which sprang out of a dead tree stump.

This and other efforts helped make christmas trees popular in the united states by the 1870s. Lansing this year s official state christmas tree after being. The christmas tree s popularity spread with the help of the influential magazine godey s lady s book which in 1850 published the 1848 illustration of the british royals though the depiction of the family was altered to appear american.