The Shadow
There are ample Christmas decoration themes available from which to choose, and many in the Alleghany Highlands have decorated their homes and businesses prior to Dec. 1.
The Town of Clifton Forge and the City of Covington have both held official Christmas tree lighting ceremonies, and Christmas decorations already line the streets in those two localities as well as the Town of Iron Gate.
How did the decorating tradition get started in the New World?
Germany is credited with first using evergreen trees lit via candlelight to celebrate Christmas. That was in the 1600 century.
German settlers are credited with spreading the Christmas tree decorating tradition during the early 1800s in the U.S., and many other traditions and ways of celebrating Christmas have become traditional during the holiday season since then.
Such Christmas decorating themes that include Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer standing vigil in yards and on rooftops serve as examples of add-on decorations created during the 1900s.
After Gene Autry’s recording of the song, “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer,” in the 1950s, 150 million of the records sold, vaulting Rudolph to hero status while making his name a household name around the world.
Today, inflatables of Rudolph in yards and in shopping malls have become commonplace along with other relatively new inflatable characters such as The Grinch and Frosty the Snowman.
Hollywood movies about each of the three characters have helped solidify each along with Santa Claus into the fabric of American culture.
An entire industry has sprung up to perpetuate Santa’s longevity, and thousands of Santa Claus outfits are manufactured and marketed, enabling many who portray the “ole gentleman from the North Pole” with an income of an estimated $5,000 to $8,000 per actor per holiday season.
With Santa, his reindeer and the late-comers such as Rudolph, Frosty, and the Grinch all being portrayed via inflatables and cutout figures in the Alleghany Highlands, the reason for the season, the celebration of the birthday of Jesus Christ, does not go unnoticed, especially via decorations in church yards throughout the Alleghany Highlands.
The National Retail Federation predicts a 6% to 8% increase over the $889.3 billion in U.S. sales that took place during the 2021 Christmas holiday season.
The FRD has estimated that the U.S. economy will get a $942.6 billion to $964.4 billion boost by Jan. 1, 2023, lending proof that the commercialization of Christmas has become a powerful driver of the economy.
