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December 1940. "Christmas shopping crowds. Gadsden, Alabama." Medium format acetate negative by John Vachon for the Farm Security Administration. View full size.
"Sierras, 1950, Nevada." The Christmas Tree Lodge on the Mount Rose Highway south of Reno is the backdrop for this latest Kodachrome of Don Cox's 1939 Mercury. The restaurant, which touted its "mahogany-broiled steaks and chops," is no more, replaced by the Tannenbaum Event Center. Now, who's gonna squeegee that tyke off the bumper? View full size.
The colorized Christmas tree is back, 107 years after its debut in Madison Square. Happy holidays from Shorpy!
New York, December 1913. "Christmas tree, Madison Square." 8x10 inch dry plate glass negative, Bain News Service. View full size.
The globular tree, the unhinged affect, the undercurrent of barely suppressed rage -- yes, it's our annual holiday missive from the family of Washington lawyer Raymond Dickey! MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL.
"Dickey tree, 1914." Our fifth Christmas visit with the family of Washington lawyer Raymond Dickey, whose portraits mix equal parts Chekhov and Addams with a dash of Dickens. National Photo Company glass negative. View full size.
December 1940. "Construction workers at Hercules powder plant in their room in boardinghouse. Radford, Virginia." Acetate negative by John Vachon. View full size.
December 24, 1941. Washington, D.C. "Greyhound bus terminal on Christmas eve. Little girl waiting." Medium format acetate negative by John Vachon. View full size.
December 24, 1941. Washington, D.C. "Greyhound bus terminal on the day before Christmas. Waiting to board the bus to Richmond." Acetate negative by John Vachon. View full size.
December 1940. "Christmas shopping crowds. Gadsden, Alabama." Medium format acetate negative by John Vachon for the Farm Security Administration. View full size.
Meanwhile, seven years later ...
This Kodachrome, originally posted here in 2011, can be seen in the December 2018 Canadian edition of Reader's Digest, illustrating the story "Andrea's Gift" in a two-page spread starting on Page 96. They spotted it here on Shorpy and I licensed it to them.
Old-school and old-old-school decorations on our traditional old-school tree. We always called these Scotch firs, but it looks more like the Noble firs I've seen online. We liked them because they had plenty of open space to let the ornaments show unhindered. The oldest one is the frosted pine cone face toward the bottom; it still has some wax blobs from early 20th Century tree candles on it. The hot-air balloon was always one of my favorites. The blue one at the center top is from our "new" c.1960 set. The plastic church was glitter-enhanced by me personally. A couple years later, all the 1940s-era light strings sacrificed their lives to illuminate my castle diorama in the basement. You can see me reflected in the ornament at lower left, along with the bright spot on the ceiling from the bounce flash I used to light this Kodachrome. View full size.
December 1940. "Christmas trees for sale at the market. Providence, Rhode Island." Medium format negative by Jack Delano. View full size.
December 1940. "Manuel Andrews, a Portuguese boy near Falmouth, Massachusetts. Family runs a seven-acre vegetable farm and have one 'new' cow of which they are all very proud. Father is a laborer in an Army camp nearby. Shot was taken just after Christmas." The tree decorated with ceramic figures of Mary, Joseph and Geronimo. Acetate negative by Jack Delano. View full size.
December 1940. "Christmas trees for sale at a gas station. Woonsocket, Rhode Island." Medium format negative by Jack Delano. View full size.
December 1940. "The family of John Kelly, who works in the Navy yard in South Boston. Their present tenement in Quincy is completely inadequate. They have been unable to move because every real estate agent has turned him down, claiming there was no reason why they should rent to large families when there is such a great demand for decent houses by hundreds of incoming shipyard workers." Medium format negative by Jack Delano. View full size.
A December 1956 holiday kitchen scene in a found Kodachrome slide from Alhambra, California. View full size.