It's a mere two months—just 61 days—'til Christmas! And, here to provide support and cheer, is Santa Claus, featured on a pair of holiday pins from the 1930's or 1940's. The pins were part of a campaign for the National Tuberculosis Association, founded in 1904. In 1907, the Association launched the Christmas Seals fundraising drive—with the modest goal of saving a troubled TB sanatorium in Delaware. The Christmas Seals campaign was very successful; it continues to this day.
Tuberculosis is a serious and deadly disease. It is caused by a bacteria which infects the lungs, spread through coughing, sneezing or breathing infected air in tight quarters. In the Nineteenth Century, it is estimated that 25% of deaths in Europe was caused by TB (then called "Consumption"). Today we have antibiotics which can kill the TB bacteria—though the treatment can take six to nine months. Modern treatments or not, in 2022 it is estimated that 1.3 million people died of TB worldwide (which made it the second infectious killer after Covid).
In 1973, the National Tuberculosis Association changed its name to the American Lung Association. The Association still combats tuberculosis—and asthma, lung disease, and other contaminants which affect breathing (exhaust and second-hand smoke). And the Lung Association still sells Christmas Seals.
Click on the photo above to learn more about these jolly—and healthful—Santa Claus pins.
Though our Greenwich Village store is now permanently closed, LEO Design is still alive and well! Please visit our on-line store where we continue to sell Handsome Gifts (www.LEOdesignNYC.com).
We also can be found in Canonsburg, Pennsylvania, at The Antique Center of Strabane (www.antiquecenterofstrabane.com).
Or call to arrange to visit our Pittsburgh showroom (by private appointment only). 917-446-4248