Planting the Lane
Deodars were introduced in 1883 to Southern California by Altadena founder John P. Woodbury who first saw a stand of the deodars in Italy.
Proclaiming them the most beautiful trees he had ever seen, he returned with seeds, and getting assurance from a friend of his at the Department of Agriculture that the trees would do well in California, had his brother Frederick nurse them at the Altadena ranch.
In two years they were transplanted to Santa Rosa Avenue, which would become a driveway from Pasadena up the near mile stretch to Woodbury’s planned estate. The mansion was never realized, but the deodar legacy was left and it flourished for over a century to follow.
First Lighting
In 1920 Altadena resident and Pasadena businessman Frederick C. Nash came up with an idea of lighting the trees for the holidays. He sought assistance from his organization The Pasadena Kiwanis Club and from the City of Pasadena to initially light a 1/4 mile section of the roadway. Over the next few years the lighting expanded until the entire row of trees, 150 in all, were lighted. The boulevard at that time was referred to as the Avenue of the Deodars. Though many pedestrians would walk along the lighted street, it was really a spectacle to behold from the seats of slowly passing automobiles.
In 1927 the newer Altadena Kiwanis Club began the custom of taking less fortunate children for rides along what they joyfully called Christmas Tree Street. It was estimated that annually more than 50,000 automobiles travel the avenue during the weeks of the lighting, and modern statistics show that number has not changed much.
Lighting went on for the next three decades with Mr. Tom Hoag, the foreman of the Woodbury Ranch who saw to the planting of the Lane, doing the honor of “pulling the switch” for each lighting ceremony. In the years 1943 and 1944 the Lane was let go dark, not for anything to do with the war effort, but for the fact that the winter snow packs were low and conservation of electricity became a concern. During that period Mr. Hoag passed away.
The Lane had its share of postcards which were published internationally, but after the war many of the cards came up with the caption, “Christmas Tree Lane.” It is supposed that is where the street actually took its present-day name.
History Part II
Christmas Tree Lane in Altadena (Santa Rosa Avenue, between Woodbury Avenue and Altadena Drive) is the oldest large-scale Christmas lighting spectacle in the United States.
In 1885, real estate magnate John P. Woodbury of the Woodbury Family, the founders of Altadena – planted 134 deodar trees (Cedrus deodara) as a grand mile-long driveway entrance to the mansion he would build. Woodbury’s mansion was never built, but the trees thrived and the “driveway” became Santa Rosa Avenue.
In 1920, Altadena resident and department store owner Frederick C. Nash organized the first tree-lighting spectacle. In that first December when deodars were decorated with colorful lights with the goal of attracting shoppers to Nash’s store, one of the most celebrated Los Angeles-area traditions was born. The Lane is recognized as the oldest large-scale outdoor Christmas display in the world, listed in the National Register of Historic Places and designated as the California State Landmark No. 990.
Every Christmas season for more than 80 years, the majestic deodars on the “Mile of Christmas Trees” are strung with 10,000 lights.
Since 1956, the tradition has been kept alive by the Christmas Tree Lane Association (CTLA), a non-profit group of volunteers that has preserved the Lane without corporate sponsors or government funding, relying only on community support. CTLA members put up the lights between October and early December, then work on taking them down from February to April. In the spring and fall, volunteers rebuild the lines, replace faulty bulbs, and clear the brush growing under the deodars.
All this hard work culminates on the second Saturday in December, when the festive lighting ceremony brings out thousands of revelers from all around the area, as well as local choirs, marching bands, solo performers, and of course – Santa Claus!