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On the Porch

The Christmas card is often sent as part of the traditional celebration of the holiday season in order to convey between people a range of sentiments related to the holiday season. Over a billion Christmas cards are sent annually in the United States. A leader in the greeting card business, Hallmark, got its start in the 1910’s, but it was in 1928 that the company began marketing its brand by using the Hallmark name on the back of every card. Company founder, J.C. Hall, was intrigued by the word “hallmark” used by goldsmiths as a mark of quality. Mr. Hall liked that the word not only said quality, but also included his family name.

According to Hallmark, the world’s first known Christmas card appeared in London in 1843, when Sir Henry Cole hired painter and illustrator, John Calcott Horsley, to design a holiday card to send to his friends and acquaintances. Lithographer, Louis Prang, a Prussian immigrant who started a small printing business near Boston in the late 1850’s, is generally considered the father of the American Christmas card. Prang published his first Christmas card for his customers in 1875, a simple flower design with the words, “Merry Christmas”.

Prang continued to publish his popular cards until the 1890s, when inexpensive imported postcards from Germany swamped the market and forced him to turn to other publishing ventures. The imported penny Christmas postcard remained popular in the United States until the outbreak of World War I, which closed off the market from German imports, and spurred the birth of the American greeting card industry.

The photograph featured this week shows a Christmas card from the museum’s collection. This card was sent out by the Powell Oil Company of Marshall. The Christmas display in the Heritage Room exhibit at the museum features many cards from over the years from personal collections of volunteers. Visit the museum when we can reopen again to view cards and other holiday decorations on display. We plan to keep the display up through January.

The Lyon County Historical Society (LCHS) is a non-profit, member-supported organization. LCHS operates the Lyon County Museum at 301 W Lyon St in Marshall. In compliance with Minnesota Executive Order 20-99, the Lyon County Museum is closed through December 18 or until further notice. To contact us, visit our website: www.lyoncomuseum.org, call: 507-537-6580, email: director@lyoncomuseum.org, or on our Facebook page.

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