Christmas decorations in the antebellum period weren’t quite like our modern decorations today.

Of course, they had no electricity so no electric lights – but they had candles.

Similar to today, though, trees were common decorations in homes as they were the European symbol of life.

Cedar trees were popular as were red-berried holly trees. They would be brought into the house on Christmas Eve and decorated with small candles, strings of beads or popcorn, and gingerbread men.

Often thorny bushes or sparkleberry branches were cut and decorated by affixing candied fruit onto their points. This practice has evolved today into creating gumdrop trees.

JR Fennell is director of the Lexington County Museum on Fox Street in Lexington.