
Christmas is right around the corner, so I hope that you have your gifts wrapped and trees decorated! Speaking of trees, we have many pictures of Christmas trees in our collection. Most are the standard kind of family picture with everyone grouped around the tree, smiling for the camera. Some of the pictures, however, are quite a bit different.
One of my favorite different Christmas tree pictures is titled “Bullock Child” and is a photo from 1926. As you can see, this photo is a simple one with a child sitting in front of a Christmas tree. What makes it stand out to me, however, is that the tree is unbelievably sparse! It bears a striking resemblance to the tree in A Charlie Brown Christmas, with the thin branches and almost non-existent needles. It makes you wonder why this family has such a sad looking tree. Did the area where they lived not have enough trees to go around? Did the family not have enough money to buy a tree? They seem to have been able to decorate it and provide gifts for everyone, as the boy is playing with something underneath the tree. Perhaps they spent too much money on decorations and presents. It might even be possible that they had an unfortunate accident with the tree, where all the needles fell off on the way home. We may never know the real reason, but it is fun to speculate.
Do you have any memories of a sad Christmas tree? Let us know in the comments, and have a good holiday season readers!