Photos show how much holiday shopping has changed in America over the years

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• Black Friday has come and gone, and now the holiday-shopping season is in full swing. 
• Black Friday as a singular shopping day is becoming less important thanks to online shopping and frequent discounting.
• Still, holiday spending is expected to top $717 billion this year, according to the National Retail Federation.
• These photos show how much holiday shopping has changed over the years. 

The holiday-shopping season is here.

Though Black Friday itself is becoming less and less important thanks to the rise of online shopping and frequent discounting year-round, many retailers have been prepping for the shopping season for months. In some cases, stores set their Christmas displays up as early as October. 

This year, holiday spending is expected to top over $717 billion, according to the National Retail Federation. And the holiday shopping craze isn't new — long lines and hectic crowds have always accompanied holiday shopping, long before the term "Black Friday" was coined.

The photos below show how holiday shopping has changed — and stayed the same — since the early 1900s:

Macy's has long been a destination for holiday shoppers.

AP Photo

This 1933 photo shows shoppers in New York City, admiring the window displays of a department store.

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Men dressed as Santa stood in the streets, collecting charity donations ...

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See Also:

• These are the best stores to shop for toys now that Toys R Us has died
• A doll with a bizarre name has become the biggest toy of the holiday season by taking over YouTube with unboxing videos
• We visited Family Dollar, the store that analysts say is becoming Dollar Tree's biggest problem. Here's what we found.

SEE ALSO: Here are the most over-the-top gifts on Neiman Marcus' guide for the ultra-wealthy

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