Download or read book The Modern Christmas in America written by William Waits and published by NYU Press. This book was released on 1994-10 with total page 291 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: An historical survey of American Christmas that describes how the modern holiday emerged. It traces the evolution from years prior to 1880, when people presented one another simple, handmade presents, through the late 19th century when industrialization inundated the celebration with inexpensive "tawdry" trinkets, to today. Includes photographs of store and product advertising. Annotation copyright by Book News, Inc., Portland, OR