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In the late 1800s and early 1900s, tuberculosis (TB) was the most feared disease in the world. It was known as the "White Plague" because the disease left its victims pale and emaciated. The poet Keats, the pianist Chopin and the novelist Robert Louis Stevenson were some of the most notable names to fall victim to this deadly disease.
In 1903, a Danish postal clerk named Einar Holboll, had the idea of adding an extra charitable stamp on holiday greetings during Christmas and using the money raised to help children stricken with tuberculosis. His plan was approved and in 1904 the first Christmas Seal was issued. It bore the likeness of Danish Queen, Louise and the word Julen which is Danish for Christmas.
In the United States, TB sanatoriums were popping up all around the country and most were makeshift affairs that could care for only a few patients at a time. One of these was located on the banks of the Brandywine River in Delaware and was about to close it's doors unless $300 could be raised to keep it going.
One of the doctors, Joseph Wales, contacted his cousin, Emily Bissell, who was active in the American Red Cross and had some fund raising experience, and asked for her help.
Emily learned about the Dane, Einar Holboll and the seals he was selling at Christmas time to raise funds for fighting TB. She soon was sketching a design featuring a red cross and the words "Merry Christmas".
She borrowed $40 from friends and had 50,000 of the first United States Christmas seals printed. She sold them for a penny each at the post office which wasn't easy going at first. Emily began a speaking campaign which attracted the attention of President Teddy Roosevelt who then endorsed her campaign.
Emily ended up raising over $3,000 - ten times the amount needed to save the Brandywine Sanatorium.
After WWII and the development of the antibiotic streptomycin, TB became a curable disease. Today the Christmas Seals benefit the American Lung Association and other lung related issues. Tuberculosis was declining, but recently has been on the rise. TB is still one of the most common major infectious diseases in the world.
Sleigh Bells Jibber Jabber