--- title: Christmas 2015: 20 Most Joyful Christmas Photos Ever description: See 20 of the most joyful Christmas photos ever, pulled from the LIFE archives. canonical: https://time.com/4141356/joyful-christmas-photos/ author: Eliza Berman article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2015-12-21T14:00:37.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-05-11T04:46:46.850Z og:title: Christmas 2015: 20 Most Joyful Christmas Photos Ever og:description: See 20 of the most joyful Christmas photos ever, pulled from the LIFE archives. og:url: https://time.com/4141356/joyful-christmas-photos/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltea3f400aa8fbbe48/6988747c3c16392c4645b193/151208-joyful-christmas-17.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1466 og:image:height: 825 og:image:alt: Christmas 1962 og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Christmas 2015: 20 Most Joyful Christmas Photos Ever twitter:description: See 20 of the most joyful Christmas photos ever, pulled from the LIFE archives. twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltea3f400aa8fbbe48/6988747c3c16392c4645b193/151208-joyful-christmas-17.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # 20 of the Most Joyful Christmas Photos of All Time > Sponsored content. 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The Brief is available free at time.com/newsletters, where readers can select it along with any of TIME's other six newsletters. There is no subscription required to receive it. #### Is The Brief free? Yes. The Brief is a free daily email newsletter from TIME. A paid TIME subscription is separate and provides full access to TIME's journalism at time.com/subscribe-agent. #### Who writes The Brief? The Brief is led by editor Richard Hall and draws on reporting from TIME's newsroom. Every edition is assembled by TIME editors rather than generated automatically.  by [Eliza Berman](https://time.com/author/eliza-berman/)  ## Eliza Berman Berman is a senior editor at TIME. Dec 21, 2015 2:00 PM UTC  Tina Smith decorates a Christmas tree at Guantanamo Naval Base, where her dad, Lt. Commander Joe Smith, is stationed, 1962. Tina Smith decorates a Christmas tree at Guantanamo Naval Base, where her dad, Lt. Commander Joe Smith, is stationed, 1962. John Dominis—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  by [Eliza Berman](https://time.com/author/eliza-berman/)  ## Eliza Berman Berman is a senior editor at TIME. Dec 21, 2015 2:00 PM UTC The holiday season is all about tidings of joy: a crackle in the fireplace, the twinkle of lights, perhaps one too many glasses of eggnog. And no matter the gravity of the stories in the news, LIFE captured that joy year in and year out. Most frequently, that process involved photographing some combination of children and Santa Claus, whether they tugged on his cotton-white beard or gaped in disbelief at some long-coveted doll. Here, as this year’s Christmas rolls around, are LIFE’s most joyful images of Christmases past. _Liz Ronk, who edited this gallery, is the Photo Editor for LIFE.com. Follow her on Twitter_ [_@lizabethronk_](https://twitter.com/LizabethRonk)_._  Children talk to Santa Claus, 1946. Frank Scherschel—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  A young girl talks to Santa Claus on the telephone, 1947. Martha Holmes—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  "Santa and Mrs. Claus" answer telephone calls in their workshop at F. A. O. Schwartz, 1947. Martha Holmes—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Santa Claus with a young girl, 1948. Martha Holmes—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Santa Claus Convention and training course at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel, 1948. Martha Holmes—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  A man shows Christmas decorations to children, 1948. Hank Walker—The LIFE Images Collection/Getty Images  Tana Centero sits in front of a Christmas tree, Vermont, 1951. Esther Bubley—The LIFE Images Collection/Getty Images  A family celebrates Christmas, 1953. Robert W. Kelley—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  A baby tastes a piece of tinsel dangling from a Christmas tree, 1954. Verner Reed—The LIFE Images Collection/Getty images  A little girl looks at a doll through a window at Christmas time, 1955. Ralph Morse—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Mrs. George Sutton and her family decorate their Christmas tree at home, 1956. Ralph Crane—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Preparations for Christmas pageant at Bryn Mawr Community Church, 1956. Francis Miller—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  A scene from the "Trail to Christmas," an adaptation of Charles Dickens' "Christmas Carol," 1957. Allan Grant—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Children's Christmas play, 1958. Nina Leen—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Young Santa Claus in a Christmas program at Elizabeth Morrow School, 1958. Nina Leen—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Ken Berends and Bill Burslem practice a soft-shoe with faculty member Joy Merkel in a Santa Claus training class at Santa Claus School, 1961. Alfred Eisenstaedt—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Tina Smith decorates a Christmas tree at Guantanamo Naval Base, where her dad, Lt. Commander Joe Smith, is stationed, 1962. John Dominis—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  A little girl gives Santa Claus a kiss, 1962. Donald Uhrbrock—The LIFE Images Collection/Getty Images  A young child visits Santa Claus at a department store, 1970. Ralph Morse—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Raymond and Susie McFarland look raptly at their new Airedale puppy, who's leaning towards them out of Christmas gift box, 1972. Ralph Crane—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4141356/joyful-christmas-photos/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4141356/joyful-christmas-photos/"},"headline":"20 of the Most Joyful Christmas Photos of All Time","datePublished":"2015-12-21T14:00:37.000Z","dateModified":"2026-05-11T04:46:46.850Z","description":"Deck the halls","url":"https://time.com/4141356/joyful-christmas-photos/","keywords":["Newsfeed","christmas","photography","Holidays","LIFE Magazine"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltea3f400aa8fbbe48/6988747c3c16392c4645b193/151208-joyful-christmas-17.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Eliza Berman","jobTitle":"Berman is a senior editor at TIME.","url":"https://time.com/author/eliza-berman/"}],"articleSection":"","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltea3f400aa8fbbe48/6988747c3c16392c4645b193/151208-joyful-christmas-17.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Christmas 1962","caption":"Tina Smith decorating a Christmas tree at Guantanamo Naval Base, where her dad, Lt. 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