Tuesday, December 25, 2012

A Christmas Story

The evolution of Christmas correspondence:

1820:
Twelve page letter handwritten on parchment.


1880: 
Five page handwritten letter with cabinet card photograph enclosed.



1910:
Postcard depicting holiday scene. Handwritten greeting on back.


1950:
Short handwritten personal letter with holiday snapshot enclosed.


1990:
Mass form letter recounting year's events, printed on computer and sent to friends and relatives, signed at bottom.



2000:
Mass form letter with text and photos combined on home computer, signed at bottom.

2005:
Formal portrait of kids, converted into holiday card at local drugstore, signed at bottom.



2010:
Snapshot of kids converted into holiday card via online service, unsigned.


2011:
Generic computer graphic sent digitally to friends and relatives via email or posted on Facebook, unsigned.



2012:
Blog post addressed to general public reposting someone else's animated tree gif, unsigned.


No comments: