Think your Christmas tree is impressive? On Dec. 25, 1904, Coronado outshone just about everyone.
That’s when the Hotel del Coronado unveiled what is widely regarded — and still debated — as the first electrically illuminated outdoor living Christmas tree in the United States. The towering Norfolk Island pine, planted on the hotel’s grounds when the resort opened in 1888, was strung with roughly 250 white electric bulbs, glowing against the Pacific backdrop at a time when electricity itself was still a novelty.
The sight was nothing short of astonishing. In 1904, most American homes relied on gas lamps or candles, and only a minority of families even had Christmas trees at all. A massive, living tree illuminated outdoors with electricity — visible from across Coronado — felt almost magical. For many who gathered on the hotel’s lawn that season, it was their first glimpse of electricity being used not for industry or necessity, but for celebration.
As with many “firsts” tied to Christmas traditions, the Coronado claim comes with nuance. Historical records show that the Edison Electric Light Co. illuminated a cut outdoor tree with electric lights in 1882. What distinguishes the Hotel del Coronado’s display is that its tree was living, rooted in the ground — a distinction that has earned it lasting recognition in holiday history…