A handcrafted Christmas card, fashioned from a simple brown paper bag during the era of the Great Depression, exemplifies how everyday citizens discovered optimism in the most trying circumstances Share Article Share Article Facebook X LinkedIn Reddit Bluesky Email Copy Link Link copied Bookmark Comments
History contains numerous periods of hardship, with the Great Depression considered among the most taxing. Yet one family proved that the holiday season can offer solace, even when times are bleak.
The global economic downturn, generally considered to have begun with the 1929 Wall Street Crash, lasted for ten years, causing extraordinary joblessness and distress. Although it began in the United States, the Depression affected most nations, with the UK and Germany suffering particularly severely. Nonetheless, an intriguing historical artifact provides an endearing peek into how ordinary people navigated these difficult conditions.
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A 1933 Christmas greeting from a Chicago home illustrates the daily struggles encountered by typical families at this time. The greeting, now kept at the National Museum of American History in Washington D.C., was composed from a brown paper bag and features basic stick-figure illustrations of a family – two grown-ups and two children – all seeming sad whilst bordered by several bills for necessities such as water, rent, food, and gas, according to the Mirror US.
The written message reads: “Oh, well – despite everything – here’s a Merry Christmas From The Pineros.”
The inside features a poem which states:
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In days gone by when we were broke
We hated to reveal it.
In fact our pride demanded that
We struggle to conceal it.
But now at last we’re right in style
And need not fear confession.
We shrug and smile and say “oh well –
It’s merely this depression.”
And so this card which once we’d scorn
Now seems within all reason.
It’s cheap – and yet it brings to you
Best wishes of the season!
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The museum states the greeting was delivered from the Pineros’ residence in Chicago to friends in Attleboro, Massachusetts – Mr and Mrs S McCormick, as noted on the envelope – bearing a one-and-a-half cent postage stamp. This economical postage rate, together with the thrifty decision to craft a greeting from a brown paper bag instead of buying a commercially made one, reveals how financially strained typical families were during those years.
The museum mentions that Peter McCormick, the couple’s son, gave both the greeting and envelope, but specified he did not know the Pineros family.
An article regarding the greeting, presented on the museum’s website, declared: “This hand-written poem is a charming instance of light verse, a playful style of poetry intended to entertain or delight, even when handling a serious topic in a humorous fashion. In the poem, the Pineros propose that they had encountered economic difficulties for quite some time, but now, due to the ongoing Depression, others shared their financial troubles, which permitted them to be more transparent and honest about their situation.
“Like numerous families, the Pineros likely had many bills for essentials including rent, groceries, utilities, milk, and ice. Given that not every family owned electric refrigeration in 1933, many depended on regular deliveries of ice to keep their perishable foods cool.
“These bills for milk and ice were separate; they were not included in the grocery bill. Local dairies provided milk and other products on a daily basis.”
The antique card has intrigued social media followers. Reacting to images of it shared on Instagram, one user remarked: “There’s something so deeply human about this.” Another individual commented: “It truly is the intent that matters.”
A third individual shared: “Going through it rn (right now) with no clue when it’ll settle and yeah, yeah, that’s [the] Christmas vibe this year all right.”