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The Official White House Christmas Ornament: Collected Stories of a Holiday Tradition
Issued annually by the White House Historical Association, Official White House Christmas Ornaments are hung on millions of Christmas trees each December. But the ornament program did not begin as a series. When the Angel Gabriel ornament was issued by the Association in 1981, it was an immediate success and the phenomenon began. Today the ornaments are a popular collector’s item and a long-standing and beloved tradition. This book includes the collected stories behind the design of each of the forty ornaments issued from 1981 to 2020. The fortieth ornament, made for 2020, honors President John F. Kennedy. It was during his administration that the White House Historical Association was founded. First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy envisioned that the nonprofit Association would serve as a private partner in maintaining the White House while educating Americans about its history.
- GenresNonfictionChristmas
96 pages, Hardcover
Published January 1, 2020
About the author
Marcia M. Anderson
14 books18 followersMarcia M. Anderson is the vice president of publishing and executive editor at the White House Historical Association. Marcia's thirty-year career in the museum field began with positions in the Smithsonian Institution's Office of Elementary and Secondary Education and the Office of Museum Programs. She spent nine years managing the publications and public relations programs for the American Institute for Conservation of Historic and Artistic Works, and then joined the American Battle Monuments Commission to work on the campaign to build the National World War II Memorial. She joined the White House Historical Association in 1998. Marcia holds degrees from the College of William and Mary and The George Washington University.
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
January 13, 2021
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My media collection (Books, CDs and DVDs/Blu Ray) is rivaled only by my Christmas ornament collection. I used to have many themes, but have pared down the collection to 6-7 now. One that I started collecting years before I got married was my Americana tree, which mainly consists of ornaments from the White House Historical Association. This year, in honor of the 40th anniversary of the Association, a companion book was released.
From the publisher: “Issued annually by the White House Historical Association, Official White House Christmas Ornaments are hung on millions of Christmas trees each December. But the ornament program did not begin as a series. When the Angel Gabriel ornament was issued by the Association in 1981, it was an immediate success and the phenomenon began. Today the ornaments are a popular collector’s item and a long-standing and beloved tradition. This book includes the collected stories behind the design of each of the forty ornaments issued from 1981 to 2020. The fortieth ornament, made for 2020, honors President John F. Kennedy. It was during his administration that the White House Historical Association was founded. First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy envisioned that the nonprofit Association would serve as a private partner in maintaining the White House while educating Americans about its history.”
There’s a brief introduction into how the Association started and how the idea of issuing an ornament came to be. The book consists of two-pages dedicated to each ornament; one page features a history of the origin of the ornament, what it is made of (most are some combination of 24k-gold plated brass, enamel color, ceramic, bisque porcelain, and Aquia Sandstone from the same quarry that provided bricks for the White House), and one page of a full-color picture of a given year’s ornament.
The ornaments began in 1981 with a simple Angel Gabriel ornament that was designed on a weather vane George Washington had at Mount Vernon. Each year, a president is honored with some sort of ornament. This year, the ornament honors John F. Kennedy, whose wife, Jacqueline Kennedy, helped found the Association.
As the years progress, the Association goes in sequential order of presidents, with a few exceptions: the celebration of the 200th anniversary of the presidency, and the 200th anniversary of the White House itself. The ornaments have increasingly become more complex and are planned long before a particular president occupies the office. Several years ago, one of the ornaments featured LED lights.
My media collection (Books, CDs and DVDs/Blu Ray) is rivaled only by my Christmas ornament collection. I used to have many themes, but have pared down the collection to 6-7 now. One that I started collecting years before I got married was my Americana tree, which mainly consists of ornaments from the White House Historical Association. This year, in honor of the 40th anniversary of the Association, a companion book was released.
From the publisher: “Issued annually by the White House Historical Association, Official White House Christmas Ornaments are hung on millions of Christmas trees each December. But the ornament program did not begin as a series. When the Angel Gabriel ornament was issued by the Association in 1981, it was an immediate success and the phenomenon began. Today the ornaments are a popular collector’s item and a long-standing and beloved tradition. This book includes the collected stories behind the design of each of the forty ornaments issued from 1981 to 2020. The fortieth ornament, made for 2020, honors President John F. Kennedy. It was during his administration that the White House Historical Association was founded. First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy envisioned that the nonprofit Association would serve as a private partner in maintaining the White House while educating Americans about its history.”
There’s a brief introduction into how the Association started and how the idea of issuing an ornament came to be. The book consists of two-pages dedicated to each ornament; one page features a history of the origin of the ornament, what it is made of (most are some combination of 24k-gold plated brass, enamel color, ceramic, bisque porcelain, and Aquia Sandstone from the same quarry that provided bricks for the White House), and one page of a full-color picture of a given year’s ornament.
The ornaments began in 1981 with a simple Angel Gabriel ornament that was designed on a weather vane George Washington had at Mount Vernon. Each year, a president is honored with some sort of ornament. This year, the ornament honors John F. Kennedy, whose wife, Jacqueline Kennedy, helped found the Association.
As the years progress, the Association goes in sequential order of presidents, with a few exceptions: the celebration of the 200th anniversary of the presidency, and the 200th anniversary of the White House itself. The ornaments have increasingly become more complex and are planned long before a particular president occupies the office. Several years ago, one of the ornaments featured LED lights.
December 1, 2025
I read a more up-to-date edition, ending with the 2022 ornament. A good companion for those collecting the White House ornaments. Even if you aren't collecting the ornaments or only have a couple I found the background of each ornament and the brief history included to be very valuable and interesting. I would love to know more about the creative process, the artist(s), and maybe even ornament designs that didn't make the cut and why.
April 22, 2021
I have the complete set of White House ornaments so I thought I’d get this book as a companion to my collection. It’s a nice consolidation of all the ornament backstories, but my big complaint is that the full color photo of each ornament only shows one side. The photos should have shown both front & back.
December 27, 2021
If you collect White House Christmas ornaments, this is a must read. If you love obscure American History, this is a fun read.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews