Vintage Holiday Ads That'll Spark Nostalgia and Joy

As the year comes to a close, holiday ads are unavoidable. They're everywhere, from the grocery store to the television, and it's impossible to scroll on your computer or phone without catching at least one. But if we're being honest, you've probably been seeing holiday promos since late-summer. So, a few more won't do any harm...

Now, we don't have any ads for flatscreen TVs or smartphone devices here, mainly because those weren't even invented in the time that many of these rare vintage holiday ads originally ran. We're here to transport you to a time before all of that, to Christmases past when gas lights, Kodak cameras, and gramophones were the hot new ticket items.

So, turn back the clock a few decades – we're talking from the late-1800s to the 1950s – and enjoy these 16 vintage holiday ads as we reminisce of a much simpler time.

While you might currently be getting inundated with holiday ads for tablets and smartphones, this ad provides "a suggestion for Christmas" in the form of a gaslit reading light.

The advert for Mason's Wine Essences shows Santa carrying a few products that bear the Mason's name, but the spotlight shines on the bottle of wine that can make "60 glasses" of "delicious non-intoxicating wine" - all for 6 pence (.45 cents in USD).

Long before phones captured the perfect snapshot for social media, Kodak was a leading manufacturer of residential-grade cameras. Here, a mother is seen capturing a photo of her daughter on Christmas morning.

To promote Hudson's soap for the holiday season in 1918, the brand launched a heartfelt advert featuring an adoring Granny in her sewing chair.

In this Christmas advert for Columbia gramophones, a dapper group of friends enjoy a cozy fire. The prices of the gramophones are advertised to start as low as $3 ($45 in 2020) and cost as much as $27 ($411 in 2020) for the wooden beaut showcased in the ad.

Back in the days when Amazon was just a rainforest, sending packages was made easy by using the American Express shipping service.

Nowadays, it's hard to imagine that a child-friendly character like Santa Claus would be in a cigarette ad. But times were different back then and Lucky Strike cigarettes showed Old Saint Nicholas taking a smoke break between deliveries.

In this holiday ad for Hillman, a British motor car company, the brand new 1937 model is shown rolling out of a scenic countryside estate. Prices started at £295 - which translates to roughly $8,285 in 2020.

A group of children point out to Santa the desirable new fashion piece: Tim's Caps hats for boys. Hopefully, he was taking notes.

As World War II came to an end in 1945, Coca-Cola inspired families to reunite with a nice cold soda in hand. As the holiday advertisement read, "Christmas together... Have a Coke... welcoming a fighting man home from the wars."

Nothing is more memorable than a Christmas tune, so that's probably why Spangles Candy decided to turn their fruity treats into a holiday jingle.

Hair gel, body creams, and other grooming products make for great stocking stuffers. Even in the '50s, it was desirable to throw a few items of this nature into the ole Christmas stocking. This ad takes the prize for its punny tagline, "How do I know he'll be pleased? by his looks of course!"

Coca-Cola is at it again. This time, a child catches a Christmas surprise when he finds Santa sneaking a refreshing beverage out of the fridge. The popular soda company began using Santa in advertisements in 1933.

If it were up to this festive and clever Holly Brand ad, stoned raisins would be a part of every holiday dish. And here's a fun fact: the UK term "stoned raisins" simply means raisins without a pit.

This vintage ad for a Crawford Tartan shortbread tin plays up the fact that this delicious British treat makes for a great present or a suitable Christmas dessert... or both!

Originally published on December 10, 1956, this advert reads "Good To Eat...Good For You" and suggests that the "family will shout when you bring out the Cadbury's Chocolate Biscuits."