Elberton in Elbert County, Georgia — The American South (South Atlantic)
The Christmas Tree House
On October 30 1858, George Loehr purchased a lot measuring four acres on present day Heard Street, known then as the road from Petersburg to Elberton, and subsequently constructed his home upon it. Local historian Herbert Wilcox relates, in Georgia Scribe (1974), that Loehr and his wife, the former Henretta Leopole, set up their first Christmas tree in their new home in honor of the birth of their first child. The lighted candles probably were used to continue the German Christian practice of symbolizing Christ as the Light of the World. During their years in the house, Loehr,a skilled cabinet maker, carved wooden toys to put under the tree and placed a small picket fence around the tree to protect the children from the candle flames.
In later years, Mrs.J.F.Ross and Mrs.S.A.Gaines, two of the Loehrs' grandchildren, reminisced about the historic tradition their grandparents had established. Mrs.Ross, whose mother was the youngest child of the three girls and three boys, recited many of her mother's tales of how the Loehr children would sit under the tree, playing with the wooden figures, which sat on a kind of artificial grass; and she spoke of visits to the Christmas Tree House, where she was allowed to see the wooden animals, which were preserved carefully at the time but lost later, Mrs, Ross also quoted her mother as saying that the practice of celebrating Christmas with a tree spread throughout the state in a very short period of time, Wilcox demonstrates the significance Of the Loehrs' introduction of the custom to Elberton by noting that their tree appeared in Elberton only a few years after the first Christmas tree was sold in New York City in 1851.
According to a 1951 article in The Elberton Star, the Loehr family sold the Christmas Tree House to McAlpin Arnold and moved to Dewey Rose, around 1875. An Elbert County Historical Society brochure (1977) notes that the house was moved from another part of the lot to this spot by Arnold and that T.O. Tabor, Jr., who lived there at a later date, added a half story upstairs, After serving as the home of the Elbert County Historical Society for a short period in the late 20th century, the house is now owned by David Powell and has been the site of his Landmark Realty Company since 1990.
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Notable Buildings • Notable Events. A significant historical month for this entry is October 1840.
Location. 34° 6.461′ N, 82° 51.688′ W. Marker is in Elberton, Georgia, in Elbert County. Marker is on Heard St (Georgia Route 72). Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Elberton GA 30635, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. Confederate Dead (approx. 0.4 miles away); Elberton Granite Bicentennial Memorial Fountain (approx. 0.4 miles away); Old Seaboard Airline Depot (approx. 0.4 miles away); In Memory (approx. 0.4 miles away); Elbert County (approx. 0.4 miles away); In the Year 1803 (approx. 0.4 miles away); Old Post Road (approx. 0.4 miles away); Elbert County Courthouse (approx. 0.4 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Elberton.
Credits. This page was last revised on June 16, 2016. It was originally submitted on August 26, 2009, by Stanley and Terrie Howard of Greer, South Carolina. This page has been viewed 1,647 times since then and 57 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on August 26, 2009, by Stanley and Terrie Howard of Greer, South Carolina. • Bill Pfingsten was the editor who published this page.