Christmas card pioneers

According to many sources such as Wikipedia and the online postcard museum, the two pioneers of the early Christmas card movement were John Calcott Horsley and Louis Prang. As mentioned, Horsley was commissioned by Sir Henry Cole in 1843 to paint a card showing the feeding and clothing of the poor.

In 1843, Sir Henry Cole commissioned John Collcott Horsley, a fashionable artist of the time, to design the first Christmas card. Horsley, along with his artwork, was known for his leadership of a campaign against the use of nude models by artists-work. This effort earned him the nickname “Clothes-Horsley”

Horsley (pictured here) born in London in 1817, also designed the Horsley envelope, a pre-paid envelope that was the precursor to the postage stamp. Later in life, in 1882 was elected treasurer, a post which he held till 1897, when he resigned and became a “retired Academician.”

It apparently took three years before the Christmas card custom caught on; then the English Parliament passed the Postage Act,making it possible to send letters for a penny. Popularity had boomed within a decade across England. Of the 1,000 original Christmas cards printed,

The Christmas card is born–and all heck breaks loose

It’s hard to believe, but the fabled Christmas card was actually born in controversy in 1843 (photo below). People screamed that it condoned drinking and more. More on that in a moment.

But to understand the Christmas card, you have to go back a long way. People have been using “cards” to express their feelings and thoughts for centuries.

There were the early Egyptians, who used papyrus scrolls to express their greetings. Greeting cards are also associated with the ancient Chinese, and as early as 1400, the Germans were printing their New Year’s greetings.

The Christmas card didn’t come along until the 1840s. Amazingly, as late as 1800 there was little celebration around Christmas. According to Digital History, “Christmas was not centered around the family or children or giving presents. There were no Christmas trees with ornaments and lights; there were no Christmas cards; and there was no kissing beneath the mistletoe. Nor were there Christmas carols. Most amazingly of all, no Santa Claus or Kris Kringle or St. Nicholas…”