What Trees Did Early Oklahoma Settlers Use For Christmas?

The classic Christmas tree is, of course, the evergreen tree. But before artificial trees were a thing, everyone had real Christmas trees. And typically, the trees used for Christmas were what were available in your area. So what kinds of trees did early settlers in Oklahoma use for Christmas?

Christmas trees have been around since the 16th century, and were introduced in America by German immigrants. And the first Christmas trees only had candles adorned to them. It wasn't until the 19th century that ornaments were introduced.

Oklahoma's early settlers used different types of trees for Christmas.

The Oklahoma State University Natural Resource Extension put together information about the history of Christmas trees in Oklahoma. Early settlers used various different types of trees and brush to make the holiday season festive.

Areas around Edmond used large blackjack trees or oak trees. Other areas used different types of brushes to form trees or arbors, including cedar branches, red-berried holly and mesquite bushes.

Even Oklahoma's early settlers dreamed of a white Christmas. There's one Oklahoma historical story describing how a father used cotton to make it look like snow on the blackjack tree.

Oklahoma residents today use a mix of artificial and real trees.

I have over a dozen trees in my home, so I mostly use artificial trees. And actually, most Oklahoma residents use artificial trees. But there are several tree farms in Oklahoma where residents pick their real Christmas tree after the Thanksgiving holiday.

At Oklahoma's Christmas tree farms, residents can pick from all kinds of trees, like firs, pines, spruces and more. So Oklahomans today don't have to pin together branches from trees found in their backyard like the early settlers.