Antique Feather Trees
The first artificial Christmas tree was developed in Germany
during the late 1800s. The specific location and creator
is not known. These artificial trees were then brought to
America by German immigrants and also produced and sold in
the dime stores during the 1920s and '30s.
These trees were made of dyed goose and turkey feathers
which were attached to wires which became the branches for
the first artificial trees. Both round and square wooden
bases were used. These bases replicated the wooden buckets
that were used for bases of live evergreen trees in Germany.
Some trees had composition berries on the tips while others
had holders for candles. The trees came in various colors:
white, green, blue, light green, and gold. The importing of
these trees stopped during WWII. Following the war, some
trees were reintroduced to the American market but by that
time Americans had already started producing their own
version of the artificial tree, the "visca tree." It wasn't
until the 1980s that "feather trees" were reintroduced to
the American market. This time the trees were being
produced by American craftsmen.
|
|
|
