Sandwiched In with Ron Brown - Chrismahanukwanzakah: How New York City Invented the Holidays

Program Type:

Lecture

Age Group:

Adults
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Today Christmas has become a global holiday celebrated in every nation of the world. But few realize that this holiday was in fact invented in New York City. The Dutch introduced the figure of Sinter Klaus, Clement Clark Moore transferred the feast of Sinter Klaus from December 6th to the 25th and Thomas Nast transformed St. Nicholas from a Greek bishop into a secular rotund resident of the North Pole and renamed him Santa Claus. F.W. Woolworth popularized the indoor Christmas tree and Thomas Edison displayed the first string of electric tree lights in Brooklyn. Macys extended the Christmas season back to the end of their Thanksgiving Day Parade and the New York Times extended it forward to the Times Square New Year’s celebration and the extended holiday was renamed The Holiday Season. African Americans added Kwanzaa to the season and Jews contributed a Menorah stand to public holiday displays. Join Professor Ron Brown as he explains the history of what we know of today as the Holiday Season.  (Sponsored by the Friends of the Library)