Denver tradition has a rich history.
Artwork by Rebecca Holt
For about ten months out of the year, the City and County building is drab, imposing, and bustling with legislature, court cases, and other legal matters; however, the other two months time is festive, bright and still quite busy.
From November 27th to January 24th, multicolored lights are arranged on the City and County building of Denver. The Denver holiday lighting tradition began in the early twentieth century. At first, Civic Center park was the only area that was decorated with lights and holiday figures. In 1922, the city of Denver employed a local electrician, John Malpied, to be in charge of the light displays. He was given a small budget, but every year the budget grew concurrently with the display. In 1935, lights and displays were added to the City and County building, livening up the Denver landmark. There grew to be 40,000 lights on the City and County building in 1950, and now there are new LED lights gracing its walls.
The LED lights are more energy efficient and are estimated to last much longer than their incandescent predecessors. The new lights will reduce energy consumption by 80 percent, and will be on the building year-round, reducing the cost of the lights and labor to hang them. The cost of the upgrade was $325,000, and the Walmart Foundation donated $50,000 to help fund the conversion.
Throughout the past 30 years, many people have brought up their convictions about religious figures on display alongside the lights. An organization of Denver citizens sued the city on the grounds that the nativity scene showed a religious preference for the government. In 1986, a non-Christian group tried to sue the City of Denver for establishing a religion and “implying that non-Christian religions are not part of the American Way of life.” It was decided in the Colorado Supreme Court, where Justice Luis Rovira determined that the purpose of the display was to promote good will and maintain Denver’s holiday lighting reputation. The nativity scene is accompanied by several different figures to show that the city isn’t promoting one religion on its property.
Denver’s light displays are some of the oldest in the country. The tradition of outdoor lights was first documented in the Denver Post in 1914. David D. Sturgeon’s son became ill, and couldn’t walk or be carried to the Christmas tree. Sturgeon then dipped light bulbs in red and green paint, and strung them around the tree outside his son’s window. A few years later, neighbors began stringing their own lights in the spirit of holiday cheer, and the seasonal hobby took off.
In the past century, holiday traditions have become a pretty and festive tenet, and the City and County Building with all its lights and figures hope to continue to celebrate the winter holidays for many years to come.
