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When Did Christmas Lights Become So Popular?

When Did Christmas Lights Become So Popular?

Holiday lights are now everywhere come the holiday season. Private homeowners tend to hang the holiday lights outside their homes around Thanksgiving weekend and keep them up through New Year’s Day. Though it might seem like a tradition without a deep history, decorating a Christmas tree with electric lights can be traced all the way back to the nineteenth century. In 1882, Edward Johnson, who was a friend and colleague of the man who invented light bulbs, Thomas Edison, replaced candles, which had traditionally been used to briefly light Christmas trees, with light bulbs. But at the time of Johnson’s innovation, the high cost and relative infancy of light bulbs ensured the idea did not catch on. And though United States President Grover Cleveland used electric lights to illuminate a Christmas tree in the White House in 1895, it would be another eight years before General Electric would begin selling Christmas light kits. Those kits cost $12 in 1903, which equates to several hundred dollars today. The first outdoor Christmas light shows started to become popular in the 1920s, and this is the same time when commercial sales of Christmas lights picked up. In the 1960s, GE’s decision to begin manufacturing Christmas lights overseas helped reduce the price of outdoor lights even further, thus paving the way for the tradition of decorating home exteriors with string lights during the holiday season to take a firm hold. And that tradition remains wildly popular today.

December Calm is a Gift

December Calm is a Gift

One gift to give yourself as the season starts to get busy is to take a moment and step back. There are many activities and opportunities to have multiple experiences with family and friends, sometimes 3 or 4 in a single day. And this is where a moment of calm is what you actually need to give yourself and your family.

Terrell Man Sentenced to Life in Prison for Continuous Sexual Assault of a Child

Terrell Man Sentenced to Life in Prison for Continuous Sexual Assault of a Child

District Attorney Erleigh Norville Wiley announced today, a Kaufman County jury has sentenced William Ray Miller Jr., to LIFE in the Texas Department of Criminal Justice. After a threeday trial before Honorable Judge Shelton Gibbs in the 422nd Judicial District Court of Kaufman County, a jury found Miller guilty of Continuous Sexual Abuse of a Child and three charges of Possession of Child Pornography and rendered the maximum sentence for each cause.

Forney ISD’s Opportunity Central Reaches Milestone in Construction

Forney ISD’s Opportunity Central Reaches Milestone in Construction

Gray skies provided the picture perfect setting for a Topping Out celebration on Thursday, Dec. 8 at the site of the new Keith Bell Opportunity Central, or The OC. The construction team and contractors with Gallagher, along with the architecture team at Huckabee, Forney ISD officials and others gathered to celebrate as one of the final beams of steel, painted bright green and adorned with signatures and messages from those in attendance, was hoisted with a crane and secured in place at the highest point of the building’s frame.

Education Continues to Provide a Sizable Return on Investment

Education Continues to Provide a Sizable Return on Investment

A recent report from the Center on Education and the Workforce at Georgetown University revealed just how valuable a college degree continues to be. As tuition costs at many colleges and universities rise and families wonder if investing in a college degree is as wise as it once was, the CEW report can reassure parents and their children that a college degree remains a valuable asset that pays significant financial dividends over the long haul.

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