Electric Christmas Lights Dazzle America
NEW YORK — The dark winter evenings of December are witnessing a brilliant transformation across American cities as the marvel of electricity reshapes an ancient holiday custom. For generations, families have illuminated their evergreen boughs with wax candles, enduring the persistent peril of house fires and dripping tallow for the sake of festive cheer. Today, however, tiny glass bulbs glowing with steady incandescent light offer a breathtaking glimpse into modern domestic life.
This luminous tradition began in December 1882 at the East 36th Street townhouse of Edward H. Johnson, an associate of the renowned inventor Thomas Edison. Mr. Johnson hand-wired eighty small glass bulbs, tinted in patriotic shades of red, white, and blue, around the branches of a parlor tree. To the astonishment of visitors who gathered outside his street-level window, the entire evergreen slowly rotated on an electric spindle while the colored globes pulsed with quiet radiance. Reporters who witnessed the parlor exhibition documented the wonder of a tree aglow with electric power, marking the first time the new current had been harnessed for seasonal decoration.
- incandescent:
- Producing light when an electric current heats a thin filament until it glows.
- tallow:
- A hard animal fat melted down to make traditional wax candles.
- spindle:
- A rod or pin that serves as an axis around which something turns.
- municipal:
- Relating to a city, town, or its local government services.
- peril:
- serious danger or the risk of injury or destruction.
- formidable:
- overwhelmingly difficult to deal with or afford due to great size, power, or cost.
- cumbersome:
- heavy, bulky, and awkward to carry, handle, or use.
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Preview questions from this passageShowHide
- 1What hazards did families traditionally face when using wax candles to light their Christmas trees?
- 2Who created the first known electric Christmas tree lights, and when did this take place?
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About this news article passage for 6th Grade
“Electric Christmas Lights Dazzle America” is a news article reading passage about History of Electric Christmas Lights, written for 6th Grade. It takes about 2 minutes to read (347 words) and comes with an interactive quiz and a printable worksheet with comprehension questions and an answer key.