Feather Trees

The first artificial Christmas tree was developed in Germany during the late 1800s. The specific location and creator is not known. These artificial trees were then brought to America by German immigrants and also produced and sold in the dime stores during the 1920s and ’30s.

These trees were made of dyed goose and turkey feathers which were attached to wires which became the branches for the first artificial trees. Both round and square wooden bases were used. These bases replicated the wooden buckets that were used for bases of live evergreen trees in Germany.

Some trees had composition berries on the tips while others had holders for candles. The trees came in various colors: white, green, blue, light green, and gold. The importing of these trees stopped during WWII. Following the war, some trees were reintroduced to the American market but by that time Americans had already started producing their own version of the artificial tree, the “visca tree.” It wasn’t until the 1980s that “feather trees” were reintroduced to the American market. This time the trees were being produced by American craftsmen.