Unique Holiday Traditions in the U.S. Camels and Lights and Everything Nice

In 1948, a Maryland teenager named Bob Hosier adorned his family’s front yard with an arrangement of sparkling and colorful illumination, leading to him meeting and falling in love with his neighbor Darlene Hughes.

Along with their neighbors, the couple embraced this tradition of decorating their homes to inspire hope in their community. Some 73 years later, Marylanders still flock to 34th Street in Baltimore to view the decorated houses and pay tribute to this Christmas story of hope and love through the holiday season.

Whether you wear ugly sweaters, have a mystery gift exchange, or dress your pets in holiday attire, the United States has quite a few unique holiday traditions. In Southern states like Georgia, holiday traditions include delicious pecan pie bakes, fried turkey feasts, and oyster cookouts. Taking part in holiday traditions and rituals helps us feel like we’re a part of something bigger.

Some traditions - such as finding citrus fruit in your stocking - remind us to find joy in the little things during tough times. During the Great Depression, many Southern families couldn't afford to buy holiday presents and gave these sweet and hard-to-come-by fruits to loved ones instead, a practice that quickly became a holiday mainstay.

For Delaware’s Swedish population, the holiday season is associated with children leaving out milk and special treats for a magical imp named Tomte. This devilish imp visits each home and leaves gifts for good children. According to local legend, tomten were mischievous and vengeful creatures who guarded farmsteads, but today they are regarded as good-natured, St. Nicholas-like figures.

Over in Mount Vernon, Virginians pay homage to George Washington by visiting Aladdin, the Christmas camel who comes to stay at the farm located on Washington’s estate each year. In 1787, George Washington paid 18 shillings (equivalent to $239 today) to bring a camel to Mount Vernon as a special treat for his family and guests. In honor of the founding father’s holiday whim, the town and his estate continue the holiday camel tradition to this day.

No matter where you’re from or what your traditions are, the holidays are a time that brings communities together and reinforces values such as freedom, faith, integrity, learning, personal responsibility, a strong work ethic, and selflessness. Of course, the best part of any holiday is sharing those traditions with family and friends and creating new ones.