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Before the tradition of sending Christmas cards began, people would exchange holiday letters, sharing their experiences from the past year, celebrating the festive season, and extending wishes for a healthy and happy new year. For some, the task of writing these letters became repetitive and time-consuming, leading them to explore more creative ways to express their festive greetings.
Beyond the creation of the world’s first Christmas cards, there were other notable milestones in the history of Christmas cards, including the first card sent by a royal family, the first card from a US president, the introduction of personalized cards, the debut of e-cards, and the first mass-produced card. Some of these firsts are delightful, others unexpected, and still others heartwarming, yet all of them are captivating.
10. The First-Ever Christmas Card
In 1843, Sir Henry Cole from London decided to take a unique approach to celebrate Christmas. Having traditionally sent letters to family, friends, and business associates, this year, he decided to surprise them with a festive greeting card. He enlisted artist J.C. Horsley, who divided the card’s design into three scenes, creating a triptych.
The central panel of the 13 by 8.5-centimeter (5 x 3.3 in) card depicted a family enjoying wine at a holiday feast. The smaller side panels illustrated acts of goodwill befitting the season. The right panel depicted the poor's clothing, and the left showed food being given to the hungry. A banner displayed the greeting, “A Merry Christmas And A Happy New Year.” Sir Henry Cole added a brief personal note to the back of the card. He ordered 1,000 copies to be printed, selling the surplus to a shop.
9. The First Royal Christmas Card
While Sir Henry Cole may have created the first Christmas card, it was Queen Victoria who helped popularize the custom of sending such cards. In 1848, an engraving of the royal family celebrating Christmas at Windsor Castle was published. The image showed Queen Victoria, Prince Albert, and their children gathered around a large decorated evergreen tree.
Albert introduced the tradition of decorating Christmas trees from Germany, and the royal family's embrace of this custom helped popularize it. Similarly, an engraving showing the royal family enjoying their tree motivated people to send Christmas cards to their loved ones.
8. The First President’s Christmas Card
While First Lady Lou Henry Hoover began sending holiday greetings to the White House staff during her husband's presidency, it was President Franklin D. Roosevelt who initiated the tradition of the presidential Christmas card.
In 1933, Roosevelt distributed a card depicting a profile of the White House portico in the background, with a pool surrounded by trees and shrubs in the foreground. The card bore the message: 'Christmas 1933' next to the photo, with 'A Merry Christmas from The President and Mrs. Roosevelt' beneath the image.
7. The First Official White House Christmas Card
In 1953, President Dwight D. Eisenhower initiated the tradition of sending official White House Christmas cards. An accomplished artist himself, Eisenhower had painted a portrait of Abraham Lincoln based on an 1863 photograph by Alexander Gardner. The cards, printed on ivory paper, featured an embossed presidential seal and the words 'Season’s Greetings' in gold. Inside, the card read, 'The President and Mrs. Eisenhower extend their best wishes for Christmas and the New Year.'
Eisenhower enlisted the help of Hallmark Cards president Joyce C. Hall, requesting '1,100 white keepsake folders' from Hallmark, each containing a reproduction of his Lincoln painting. All folders were embossed with the official Presidential Seal. The cards were sent to diplomats, government officials, cabinet members, and members of Congress. Throughout his presidency, Hallmark printed additional official White House cards for Eisenhower and also created personal cards for his family and friends.
Since President Eisenhower’s first official White House cards, the tradition has continued with each successive president sending official cards to hundreds of individuals tied to the first family or the US government’s executive branch.
6. The Christmas Cards of the First President Promoting Emerging Artists
In 1981, during his first term, President Ronald Reagan sought to capture the magical essence of the White House Christmas experience to share with others. At the same time, he wished to provide a platform for young artists. Each year, he enlisted a different artist to depict the festive spirit of the White House, promoting the works of eight different artists throughout his two terms in office.
Jamie Wyeth designed the first of the eight cards, titled Christmas Eve at the White House. His painting portrays a serene winter night, with a sky speckled with stars and a blanket of snow covering the lawn. Tall trees and shrubs surround the White House, standing like silent guardians of the portico. A single lit window cuts through the night, casting warmth over the White House. First Lady Nancy Reagan shared that the card made her envision everyone having gone to bed, leaving her alone in her dressing room, wrapping presents and preparing for Christmas Eve.
5. The First Custom Christmas Card
Annie Oakley, the sharpshooter who performed with Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show, was in Glasgow, Scotland, in 1891 as the Christmas season approached, away from her home.
Dressed in a tartan, she had a photograph taken of herself and then created her own Christmas card. She included her image on the design and had a local printer produce a batch to send to her family and friends back home.
4. The Birth of Electronic Christmas Greeting Cards
The first digital Christmas cards emerged online around 1995. Often animated, these e-cards are known for their vibrant and humorous style. Customers can personalize them by adding their own photos, videos, and text, within certain limits.
Each year, hundreds of millions of electronic greeting cards are sold, yet they have had minimal impact on the sale or popularity of traditional paper cards, which still sell in the billions. Paper cards have also evolved through technology, now offering musical, mechanical, countdown, and other novelty types.
3. The First Christmas Card Featuring Two Figures of Baby Jesus
While Jesus is unique to Christians, a Christmas card featuring two figures of the baby Jesus is not considered unorthodox. This card was sent by Pope Francis in 2016. The card's front depicts a color photograph of Giotto's 14th-century nativity fresco, located in the lower basilica of St. Francis in Assisi. Completed in 1313, this particular nativity scene is one of a kind as it shows two baby Jesuses, one symbolizing His human nature and the other His divine nature. The color blue, which appears in the night sky of Bethlehem and in the robes of Mary and Joseph, symbolizes the divine aspect of the scene, according to Enzo Fortunato, press officer of the Sacred Convent of Assisi. This hue, royal and vibrant, captivates pilgrims and tourists alike.
Fortunato further explained the pope's choice of fresco, noting that the pope was highlighting three 'terribly human' gestures: The first gesture is seen in the two midwives who are shown beside one of the baby Jesuses, embracing and supporting Him. Their act of holding the baby signifies Jesus' connection to humanity. The fresco also symbolizes various forms of human suffering, including hunger, represented by breastfeeding, and cold, symbolized by Jesus’ departure from His homeland. The grotto and the shepherds’ area within the scene represent daily hardships that become sources of hope, Fortunato added.
St. Francis, who established the nativity scene tradition in 1223, saw it as a way to visually experience the birth of Christ. He wished to recall the memory of the Child born in Bethlehem, observing firsthand the humble conditions of His infancy, how He lay in a manger, with the ox and ass by His side. Pope Francis’s Christmas card features an abbreviated version of Isaiah 9:5, which reads: 'For a child will be born to us, Prince of Peace.'
2. The First Mass-Produced Christmas Card
In 1866, the British publisher Goodall & Son tasked Marcus Ward & Co. with lithographing a series of four distinct designs, drawn by artist C.H. Bennett.
The following year, Goodall began mass-producing the first Christmas cards, which featured designs by the same artist, marking the start of the modern card tradition we recognize today.
1. The First Politically Correct Christmas Card
In 2009, during his first year in office, President Barack Obama stirred controversy by introducing the White House’s first politically correct Christmas card. The card made no mention of the word 'Christmas,' either on the front or inside. The image featured was similarly neutral: a gold wreath encircling a gold presidential coat of arms, bordered by a maroon frame. Beneath the image, the card read 'Season’s Greetings' and '2009.' The accompanying message wished recipients 'a joyous holiday season and a new year blessed with hope and happiness.'
For the previous eight years, President George W. Bush’s Christmas cards had included Bible verses, while President Bill Clinton’s cards, for eight years before that, displayed various rooms of the White House decorated for Christmas. Obama’s generic card faced backlash, and Representative Henry Brown, a Republican from South Carolina, introduced a resolution defending the 'sacredness of the Christmas holiday.' Over 40 of his colleagues, both Democrat and Republican, co-signed his bill.
In response to the controversy, a White House spokesperson assured the public that no offense was intended. Obama explained his choice of a generic design, emphasizing that it reflected the diversity of religious faiths among Americans. It was noted that Obama’s predecessor had also sent out cards that did not mention Christmas, as did Obama himself during his time as a US senator. While Obama’s politically correct Christmas card had its critics, it also had its defenders, including Barry Lynn, the executive director of Americans United for Separation of Church and State.
