Mayor Marolyn Morrison — Mayor Morrison offers a little bit of holiday season trivia

December 5, 2013 · 0 Comments

The holiday season is upon us and many will be rushing to fit in last-minute shopping or spending quality time with loved ones.
I thought that this week, I would share with you some holiday trivia that’s fun for all.
Christmas trees have long been a tradition in many of our homes and have been popular in Germany as far back as the 16th century. In England, they became popular after Queen Victoria’s husband Albert, who came from Germany, made a tree part of the celebrations at Windsor Castle.
The Guinness world records claims that the tallest Christmas tree ever cut was a 221-foot Douglas fir that was displayed in 1950 at the Northgate Shopping Center in Seattle, Washington.
Ontario is home to the most Christmas tree farms in Canada, with a total of 725 farms. However, Quebec is the leading Christmas tree producer. In total, Canada has 2,461 tree farms. Last year, Canada exported a whopping 1,738,212 fresh cut Christmas trees and almost half of those came from Quebec. Saskatchewan, Alberta, Newfoundland and Labrador did not export a single Christmas tree.
All this talk about Christmas trees, we can’t forget to mention the candied decoration loved by all — the candy cane. During the Christmas/Hanukkah season, more than 1.76 billion candy canes will be made.
The Twelve Days of Christmas is a classic holiday carol. If you were to receive all of the gifts in the song, it would total 364 presents; one for each day of the year. If you were to purchase all the gifts within the song, it would cost $27,393. That amount is up 7.7 per cent from last year.
In 1843, A Christmas Carol was written by Charles Dickens in just six weeks! He wrote many other Christmas stories, but none as popular. What’s the most played Christmas movie? It’s a Wonderful Life, and The Nutcracker is the most famous Christmas ballet.
We all know Jingle Bells as a definite Christmas classic, but it might surprise you to learn that is was first written for Thanksgiving.
Can you name some of Canada’s most festively named places? How about, Christmas Island, N.S.; Gift Lake, AB; Reindeer Station, N.W.T; or Holly, ON.
I hope that these fun facts helped to lift you into the holiday spirit. Please don’t forget the true meaning of Christmas!