Christmas facts for your holiday trivia game….
- About $1,000 is spent on Christmas gifts each year by the average American family.
- In 1836, Alabama was the first US state to set Christmas as a legal holiday and in 1907 Oklahoma was the last.
- Children who wrote letters to Santa Clause in the US have their letters delivered to Santa Clause, Indiana.
- It is believed that Sir Henry Cole of London, England sold the first Christmas cards in 1943. Only 1,000 cards were sold.
- Over 3 billion Christmas cards are sold in the UK and the US each year.
- Queen Victoria’s husband, Prince Albert, was German and is credited with establishing the popularity of the Christmas tree in England in the mid-19th century.
- The Rubik’s Cube, the largest selling Christmas toy in 1980, sold for $1.99, but now sells for nearly $10.
- The origin of stockings being hung on Christmas came from the Dutch custom of leaving shoes full of food for St. Nicolas’ donkey which would then be filled with small gifts by St. Nicholas.
- The US Post Office anticipated delivering more than 15 billion pieces of holiday mail, including more than 850 million packages.
- The Christkindlesmarket in Nuremberg, Germany first half in 1570, is one of Europe’s oldest Christmas markets and claims to be the largest in Europe. It sells gluhwein (spiced, mulled wine), sweets, sausages, and Christmas decorations and ornaments.
- 28 sets of LEGOS are sold every second during the Christmas season.
- During the Christmas season, each year more than 1.76 billion candy canes are made.
- While shopping during the Christmas season, shoppers use their credit cards more than 6,000 times every minute.
