The Complete Christmas
Collection
Christmas Recipes, Crafts
and Kids Activities and xmas stories. One
would think that Christmas lights have been around for as long as Christmas itself.
Can any of you imagine Christmas without lights? How would the children find their
way in the dark, so early on Christmas morning without them? The history of Christmas
lights is intricately tied to the dawn of the modern era, when houses began to
be supplied with electricity. As
you are likely aware, Thomas Edison invented the first functioning light bulb
back in 1879. A few years later, in 1882, an associate of his first employed the
use of lights on his Christmas tree. Edward Johnson was the first to electrically
light his family Christmas tree in his New York home. His home was located in
one of the first sections of the city to be wired for electricity. A
visiting reporter from Detroit reported the following in "The Detroit Post and
Tribune": "Last evening I walked over beyond Fifth Avenue and called at the residence
of Edward H. Johnson, vice-president of Edisons electric company. There, at the
rear of the beautiful parlors, was a large Christmas tree presenting a most picturesque
and uncanny aspect. It was brilliantly lighted with many colored globes about
as large as an English walnut and was turning some six times a minute on a little
pine box. There were eighty lights in all encased in these dainty glass eggs,
and about equally divided between white, red and blue. As the tree turned, the
colors alternated, all the lamps going out and being relit at every revolution.
The result was a continuous twinkling of dancing colors, red, white, blue, white,
red, blue---all evening." In
1890, Edison published a promotional brochure which may have been the first mention
of commercially available electrically powered Christmas
lights. It stated that "There are few forms of decoration more beautiful and
pleasing than miniature incandescent lamps placed among flowers, or interwoven
in garlands or festoons; for decorating Christmas trees or conservatories..."
From there, the popularity
of Christmas lights exploded. Before long, every family had them and they became
synonymous with the Christmas tree. Its hard to imagine Christmas without Christmas
lights. I tip my fuzzy red cap to you, Mr. Edison. You have given us all a gift
we will always cherish!
Catherine
Spelling absolutely loves spending Christmas with family and friends. When she
is not counting down the days until Christmas, she writes for christmaslightsanddecorations.com
- an online resources for all things relating to Christmas and decorations, with
information about Christmas
trees, artificial Christmas trees, fiberoptic Christmas trees and more. | 