The Christmas Pickle 

Legend says that in an old tradition from Germany parents hung a pickle on the Christmas tree where it couldn't easily be seen after their children had gone to bed on Christmas Eve. The first child to spot the pickle on Christmas Day would receive a special blessing or extra gift.

However, many refute the story, because most Germans know nothing about it today. I know I hadn't heard of it before, and at least one of my ancestors was German. It seems, either the practice is so old that it's long been lost and forgotten, or it's a hoax. There's also various other stories on the origins of the Christmas pickle.

Skeptics say that the story was invented as a marketing ploy by Woolworth stores after they'd ordered a shipment of glass ornaments from Germany in the shape of vegetables around 1880. Even after they quit ordering the ornaments from Germany, they continued to order them from France and encouraged the story. Yet, there doesn't appear to be enough hard evidence to indicate this is the real reason for the legend. 

There's also other stories about Die Weihnachtsgurke or the Christmas pickle. Some link it to a Bavarian prisoner in Andersonville prison during the Civil War. Others say it comes from either the Middle Ages or the Victorian Era and involves two Spanish boys. The truth is that no one knows for sure where the custom originated, but some families still have fun with it. Pickle ornaments can still be purchased today, especially at places like Berrien Springs, Michigan, the Christmas Pickle Capital of the World. I found one at a dollar store.

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