Is Christmas a day off from work? A solemn religious observance? An extravagant affair? A secular “holiday season”? Many of our expectations, attitudes, and ideals surrounding Christmas have been established or reflected by Presidents and First Ladies throughout history. Here are 12 famous firsts.
1856
Franklin Pierce brings a Christmas tree into the White House. There’s some dispute over whether this was officially a White House Christmas tree. See below.
1862
Abraham Lincoln pardons the turkey that was meant to be the main course at Christmas dinner
1870
Ulysses S. Grant declares Christmas a legal holiday
1889
Benjamin Harrison places a Christmas tree in the Second Floor Oval Room. Many consider this the first official White House Christmas tree.
1895
Grover Cleveland is the first to use electric Christmas lights on a presidential Christmas tree
The Cleveland family Christmas tree1903
Theodore Roosevelt bans Christmas trees from the White House, due to environmental conservation concerns. But his son smuggled one in and hid it in a sewing room closet.
1923
Calvin Coolidge lights a tree on the White House lawn
1928
Calvin Coolidge makes Christmas Eve a holiday for all federal employees
1953
Dwight Eisenhower sends the first official presidential Christmas card
The first White House Christmas card1958
Dwight Eisenhower broadcasts a Christmas message from space via the first American satellite
1961
Jacqueline Kennedy starts the tradition of a decorative theme for the White House Christmas tree. (Her first theme was The Nutcracker”)
The 1962 White House Christmas tree had a Nutcracker theme1993
The Clinton’s “holiday cards” do not mention the word “Christmas”