The custom of mailing Christmas cards originated in 1843 with Sir Henry Cole of England.
Because he had too many patrons to hand compose Christmas regards, Sir Henry Cole contracted artist John Calcott Horsley to fashion a card onto which he had printed “A Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to You”.Sir Henry had one thousand cards imprinted that year. Presently, only twelve remain. The practice of sending Christmas cards caught on and soon, became a Christmas tradition.
In the late 1800′s and early 1900′s, Kate Greenaway, a well-loved childrens writer, created some of the most well-received Christmas cards.Her creations often utilized multi-media, with different fabrics, fringe and papers. Some were even elaborate pop-ups featuring skaters and tiny mangers.
In the United States, Christmas cards were not wide-spread until 1875 when a German immigrant, Louis Prang began producing them. BeforeUntil to that time, Americans imported Christmas cards from England. Sadly, Prang was forced out of business in the 1890′s when overseas publishing houses produced lower priced cards. Even so, Prang is known as the originator of the American Christmas card.
The card industry saw many technical advancements during World War I with fierce competition between card companies.
Color lithography, first was used during the 1930s, revitalized the card industry.
Placing humor into cards was the big change for greeting cards in the 1950′s. These cards, called staple cards, are still very popular today.
In the 1990′s, the electronic card, or e-card, was introduced.
In present day, there are a wide range of Christmas cards available. From traditional scenes and religious Christmas cards to jokes, there is a card out there to put anyone in the holiday spirit. 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.
As a staple of the holidays, Christmas cards are sent to family, friends and business colleagues to express holiday wishes. With people’s busy lives, it is often the only time they update family and friends on events that happened in their lives during the year. The Christmas card has made many changes since its introduction in the 19th century, but the sentiment behind it is always the same: “Merry Christmas!”