Holiday Decoration, Old Town Alexandria, 2006.There is a conceit, perhaps based on evidence, that ap

Holiday Decoration, Old Town Alexandria, 2006.There is a conceit, perhaps based on evidence, that apples, and, for those who could afford the exotic fruit, pineapples were combined with greens for holiday decorations in the colonial era. Perhaps, but the celebration of Christmas was far less important in the US prior to the late 19th century. In colonial and early national times it was merely reason for a half day off, a church service, and perhaps a festive meal. There is little evidence for holiday decoration in early America except in ethnic enclaves where Germans and Scandinavians celebrated the day with the the ancient pagan customs of “Jul" adapted to Christian myth. Alexandria was mostly settled by Scots (for whom Hogmanny, New Year, is more important) and English, and thus there is virtually no evidence for early decorations. The Christmas holiday as it is now “celebrated” is mostly a consequence of the merger of pre-Christian Solstice celebrations  - the Roman Saturnalia and North European customs like the tree - with late 19th century advertising, especially by department stores and their precursors and later by soft drink companies. In its modern form the holiday has become, mostly by calculated design, a celebration of crass consumerism  to which some older myths have been attached. -- source link

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