Christmas Lights | History

Christmas Lights | History

Although the first strand of electric lights was created more than 120 years ago, outdoor lights were not introduced to the public until the late 1920s.

THE HISTORY

Before Christmas lights, holiday trees were decorated with candles.

In 1882, Edward H. Johnson, Thomas Edison’s friend and partner, put the first strand of electric Christmas tree lights together. Eighty red, white and blue lights were hand-wired and placed around Johnson’s Christmas tree.

During the early history, Christmas lights were so expensive they were commonly rented rather than sold. An electrically lighted tree was a sign of status. Lighting a normal-size Christmas tree before 1903 would have cost about $2,000 in today’s money.

President Grover Cleveland is partially responsible for encouraging the acceptance of indoor electric lights. In 1895 Cleveland requested that the tree in the White House be decorated with hundreds of multi-colored lights.

In 1923, the National Christmas Tree, which sat just south of the White House, was adorned with 3,000 lights under the watch of President Calvin Coolidge.

Outdoor lights for Christmas decorating weren’t introduced publicly until the late 1920s.

Electrically lighted Christmas trees didn’t become a full-blown custom in the United States until after World War II.

General Electric was the first company to offer pre-wired strands of Christmas lights.

Christmas decorating contests were sponsored by General Electric and various Edison Electric companies to spread the word and promote sales of the lights.

Though Edison and Johnson are credited for the creation of electric light strands, Albert Sadacca saw the future of selling Christmas lights to the public.

In the 1920s, Sadacca and his brothers started the National Outfit Manufacturers Association, which later became NOMA Electric Co. NOMA had control over the Christmas light market until the 1960s.

Source: www.loc.gov and www.oldchristmaslights.com