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Observance Was Once
Against The Law
At one time it was illegal to observe Christmas in this country.
In 1659 the Massachusetts Bay Colony’s general court passed the following resolution: “Whosoever shall be found observing any such either by forebearing labor, feasting, or any other way, as a festival, shall be fined five shillings.”
It is believed ' that the first “legal” observance in this country was in 1687 when Governor Andros conducted services in Boston’s town hall. However, it was not until 1836 that the Massachusetts State Legislature passed laws making Christmas a legal holiday.
Chr*stkindl-Austrian
Mailing Center
The postmarks, “Christmas, Fla.” and Santa Claus, Ind. are well known in the United States as thousands of Americans like to send their holiday gifts to others bearing seasonal postmarks. But other countries have such holiday mailing centers, too, and a typical one is the “Christkindl” (Christ Child) Post Office in Austria.
Since it was established 11 years ago, the Christkindl Post Office has enjoyed great popularity inside the country and out. It is a special post office, open to the public only between December 6 and January 6 each year. All mail is cancelled with a special slogan. The office handles about 797,000 letters and packages a year, many of which are sent abroad.
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