<P> In Colonial America, the Pilgrims of New England disapproved of Christmas . The Plymouth Pilgrims put their loathing for the day into practice in 1620 when they spent their first Christmas Day in the New World building their first structure in the New World--thus demonstrating their complete contempt for the day . Non-Puritans in New England deplored the loss of the holidays enjoyed by the laboring classes in England . Christmas observance was outlawed in Boston in 1659 . The ban by the Puritans was revoked in 1681 by an English appointed governor, Edmund Andros, however it was not until the mid-19th century that celebrating Christmas became fashionable in the Boston region . By the Declaration of Independence in 1776, it was not widely celebrated in the US . </P> <P> Prior to the Victorian era, Christmas in the United States was primarily a religious holiday observed by Roman Catholics, Episcopalians, and Lutherans . Its importance was often considered secondary to that of Epiphany and Easter . </P> <P> As was the case with other Christian holidays, Christmas borrowed elements from pagan peoples, including yule logs and decorations such as candles, holly, and mistletoe . Christmas trees were seen as pagan in origin . During the various Protestant reformations, these paganizing elements were a source of controversy . Some sects, such as the Puritans, rejected Christmas as an entirely pagan holiday . Others rejected certain aspects of Christmas as paganizing, but wanted to retain the "essence" of the holiday as a celebration of the Christ's birth . This tension put in motion an ongoing debate within some Protestant denominations about the proper observance of Christmas . </P> <P> According to historian Ronald Hutton, the current state of observance of Christmas is largely the result of a mid-Victorian revival of the holiday, spearheaded by Charles Dickens . In A Christmas Carol, Hutton argues, Dickens sought to construct Christmas as a family - centered festival of generosity, in contrast to the community - based and church - centered observations, the observance of which had dwindled during the late 18th and early 19th centuries . </P>

Legal requirement to go to church on christmas until 1969