Altadena’s Christmas Tree Lane is blazing again and earning as many Oooooohs and Aaahs as Clark Griswold’s lit house.
The annual tradition is just the thing to do to get you into the holiday spirit. grab the kids, and your relatives and head up to Santa Rosa Avenue between Woodbury Road and Altadena Drive in Altadena any night from 5:30 p.m. until midnight. The spectacular runs until January 9.
Christmas Tree Lane has been lighted every year since 1920 when department store owner Frederick C. Nash organized the first tree-lighting spectacle, decorating the old deodar trees along Santa Rosa with colorful lights to attract shoppers to his store.
The next few years after that, volunteers began helping string the lights, and soon the Lane became recognized as the oldest large-scale outdoor Christmas display in the world.
It is also listed in the National Register of Historic Places and designated as a California State Landmark.
The only years on record when the Lane went dark on Christmas was in the years 1943 and 1944 when winter snow packs in the mountains went low and electricity conservation became a concern.
Visitors are asked to tag photos @ctl_altadena and #christmastreelane.
To learn more about the history of Altadena’s Christmas Tree Lane, you can visit www.christmastreelane.net/
To volunteer to help, visit www.christmastreelane.net/
