Nothing adds as much to Christmas decorations than lights, no matter whether used on a tree, strung across rooftops, or used in many other ways, as they have been since their inception in 1882.
Christmas Lights in the 19th Century
The first strand of Christmas lights was created by Thomas Edison, who is usually associated with the successful and practical light bulb. During the holiday season of 1880, he strung lights around the outside of his Menlo Park laboratory and railroad passengers were able to see them from the passing trains.
Before electric Christmas lights appeared, candles were used to light up Christmas trees. It was a dangerous custom and often resulted in house fires. Edward H. Johnson, a friend of Edison and partner in his Illumination Company, put the very first string tree lights together in 1882. He hand-wired 80 red, white and blue lights bulbs together and wound them around a revolving Christmas tree. However, it took over forty years for the lighting to become a traditional part of the American holidays.
At that time, there was still a mistrust of electricity, so the public was not anxious to follow Johnson's example. Thus it was not until 1895, when President Grover Cleveland requested the White House family Christmas tree be illuminated by hundreds of multi-colored electric light bulbs, that indoor electric holiday lights began to be accepted.
Christmas Lights in the 20th Century
General Electric then began offering pre-assembled kits of Christmas lights, which were very expensive and needed some understanding of electricity to use them. They required a wireman, what is called an electrician today. In 2008 dollars, the cost would be around $2,000.
In 1917, the Sadacca family, who owned a novelty lighting company, began offering brightly colored strands of Christmas lights. In the 1920s the Sadacca brothers organized the National Outfit Manufacturers Association (NOMA), a trade association. which later became NOMA Electric Company. Its members cornered the Christmas light market until the 1960s. During this time there were still problems with the strings of lights. If one bulb burned out, it would cause the entire line to fail.
During the 20th century, Japan began producing and exporting decorative figural lights reflecting American customs: Santas, cartoon characters, Easter bunnies and Halloween jack-o-lanterns. Other innovations were bubble lights, mini lights that looked like icicles, and rope lights
Christmas Lights in the 21st Century
LED lights and technology are the latest trend in the 21st century. which are not only more brilliant and striking in color but are also energy efficient and very durable. The durability of LEDs has encouraged some homeowners to leave their holiday lights up year round.
The Chicago Tribune (11/28/08) reports that today's LED lights use only about 0.08 watts per multicolored bulbs---about a sixth of what incandescent mini-lights use and considerable less than the 6 watts for a comparable incandescent lights. They also last up to 50,000 hours when used indoors, remain cool to the touch, and bring extra safety features.
Christmas lights have come a long way from those bulbs outside Edison's lab to the LED holiday lighting of today. Whether used to light up trees, at municipal buildings, or simple homes, lighting, ornaments and cards continue to bring cheer to the Yuletide holiday.
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