PEAKE HOLIDAY FACTS & FUN

Below are some fun facts about the holiday season for you to share with your house guests and dazzle them with your holiday knowledge!  Don't worry...we don't mind if you take all the credit!

• The world's largest Christmas present was the Statue of Liberty.  The French gave it to the U.S. in 1886.  It is 46.5 meters high and weighs 225 tons!
• Americans buy an estimated 25-30 million real Christmas trees each year, with all 50 states growing them - even Hawaii!
• Santa visits 2,536 homes every second to deliver all his presents.
• "Jingle Bells" was first written for the Thanksgiving holiday and then became one of the most popular Christmas songs.
• Animal Crackers are not really crackers, but cookies that were imported to the United States from England in the late 1800s.  Barnum's circus-like boxes were designed with a string handle so that they could be hung on a Christmas tree.
• The first Christmas cards were created in London in 1843 by Sir Henry Cole.
• The North Pole is approximately 4,300 miles from Chesapeake.