For those of you who celebrate, enjoy the Christmas holiday.
Here is an article from our Academic Search Complete database about the history of Christmas traditions in the US.
The Stories Behind Our Christmas Traditions (MVCC Colleague ID # required from off campus) by Voctor Parachin from Priest (Dec 2010 p20-23)
Abstract: The article discusses the stories that influenced U.S. Christmas traditions. According to the author, the dominant view about Christmas primarily came from the imagination of poet Clement Moore, who in his 1822 poem, creates the sleigh, names the reindeers, and tells about the chimney drop and the bags of toys. The author says that the Christmas tree tradition originated in Germany in the late 15th century with the Paradise Play.