Overview
A Christmas club is a special-purpose savings account, first offered by various banks and credit unions in the United States beginning in the early 20th century, including the Great Depression. Bank customers would deposit a set amount of money each week into a savings account, and receive the money back at the end of the year for Christmas shopping.
Origins
The first known Christmas Club started in 1909, when Merkel Landis, treasurer of the Carlisle Trust Company of Carlisle (Pennsylvania), introduced the first Christmas savings fund. The Club attracted 350 customers who saved about $28 each, and the money was disbursed on December 1 of that year.
The January 2, 1920 edition of the Belvidere, Illinois Daily Republican announced that the town's State Farmers Bank was encouraging parents to enroll their children in the Christmas Banking Club "to develop self-reliance and the saving habit".
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