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Found it! Ho, ho, ho.

Posted by ESC on December 22, 1999

In Reply to: The Christmas Card posted by Teach on December 21, 1999

: Does anyone know who originated the Christmas card and when did it come into common use. I suspect that it was sometime in the last century (1800s) for all sorts of good reasons such as the invention of cheap mail systems and stamps etc.

This doesn't say if this custom began in the U.S., but I'm guessing it was. Does anyone know otherwise? "The tradition of sending Christmas cards originated in the mid-1800's when a few people began to design handmade cards to send to family and friends. A man named John Calcott Horsely is credited as being the first to actually print Christmas cards. The card depicted a family enjoying the holiday, with scenes of people performing acts of charity. The card was inscribed:"Merry Christmas and A Happy New Year to You"

This comes from a very nice site www.picklejar.com/ traditions.htm that has origins of other Christmas traditions.

And while I was looking, I also found a site that tells the real meaning behind the song "Twelves Days of Christmas." www-personal.si.umich.edu/ ~rlm/twelvedays.html

And a Merry Christmas to all you guys from here in snowless Kentucky.

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