Happy Holidays!


A Festive Feature!


For the month of December we are featuring a variety of records related to the history of the Licking County Courthouse Holiday Lighting. While Licking County residents young and old enjoy the ornate multicolor lights of the courthouse today, the origins of this dazzling tradition were very humble.

In 1929 cities and towns across the United States put up special light displays as part of Light’s Golden Jubilee, a national tribute to Ohioan Thomas Edison and the 50th anniversary of his electric light bulb. The Licking County Courthouse tower was crowned with simple white stringer bulbs and the roof edges were vertically lined. The lights were maintained for several years after the jubilee, but when the United States was pulling into the Second World War the lights were removed and the tower remained dark.

The lights would return during the 1948 holiday season through the tireless efforts of Allan Milliken, who had taken over as executive of the Newark Chamber of Commerce. New sets of color-tinted stringer bulbs and large spotlights with color lenses were installed along the Courthouse’s tower and roof to give the building an attractive yuletide look, which instantly struck a chord with residents and visitors.

Milliken worked with the Advocate’s Advertising Manager, Bill Sherman; General Electric lighting engineers, Ohio Power, and other local contacts around Newark to create a colorful design with new festive decorations and more lights. To bring the final design to life, a fundraising goal of $10,000 was set for the purchase of decorations and lights, as well as the labor and expertise to install them. Milliken also coordinated with the Board of County Commissioners to increase the Courthouse’s electrical system.

The following year saw the first grand lighting ceremony, held the Friday evening after Thanksgiving with Santa as the master of ceremony. Residents and visitors were delighted with the lights, new decorations and family activities. A tradition was born, and from then on Licking County residents and visitors would come together on the day after Thanksgiving to celebrate the official start to the holiday season by lighting the Courthouse.

As multicolor LED lights became more readily available in the late 2000s, the Courthouse Lighting Committee began to replace their incandescent lights for the brighter more efficient LEDs. In 2015 the last of the incandescent lights were replaced; the Advocate declared the decorations “Bold and Bright.”

The tradition of lighting the Licking County Courthouse for the winter holidays remains a favorite part of the season for residents and visitors of all ages; 2018 marked the 70th Anniversary of the first holiday lighting.

If this information interests you, please contact us at 740-670-5121 or archives@lcounty.com.

 

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