Many homes have been using incandescent light bulbs since they became available near the end of the 19th century. These bulbs were effective at lighting a home, but they had a few drawbacks. One drawback is that they produced heat as a byproduct.

Another drawback was that they used a significant amount of electricity. Fortunately, a new solution to the common incandescent bulb was created when LED bulbs began to gain popularity around 2004.

With this innovation, people could light their homes without driving up their electricity bills. Not long after LED bulbs started to rise in popularity, the first Sunday of October was designated as Change A Light Day.

The History Of Change A Light Day

Before we discuss the history of this holiday, we would like to briefly discuss the history of the light bulb that would change everything: the LED bulb. In 1961, Robert Biard and Gary Pittman invented an infrared LED light while they were employed at Texas Instruments.

Since this bulb only produced infrared light and was microscopic, it wasn’t much use for lighting. It wouldn’t be until 1962 that Nick Holonyak Jr. invented the first LED to produce visible light while he was working at General Electric. Sure, that light was red, but it was visible.

As the 1960s progressed, various engineers and researchers continued to experiment with semiconductors to produce more efficient LEDs. As they began their research using various chemical substrates, they ended up inventing red and orange LEDs.

In 1972, M. George Craford invented a pale yellow LED. The intensity of these lights was also increased. Monsanto became the first company to mass-produce LED lights.

As research continued in the field of LEDs, different types of LED lights emerged. There were orange-red, yellow, and bright green LEDs produced by the early 1990s. Then Shuji Nakamura invented ultra-bright blue LEDs.

These LEDs would become the foundation of current LED lights. The U.S. Department of Energy then invested in developing white LEDs that could be used for residential and commercial use.

Around 2004, LEDs began to become extremely popular, and a campaign was established to encourage people to switch from their old incandescent light bulbs to the more energy-efficient LED bulbs. LED bulbs use more than 75% less energy than incandescent bulbs.

Change A Light Day was established in 2005 by the Kentucky Office of Energy Policy. This office approached Kentucky Governor Ernie Fletcher to support the idea. The First Lady of Kentucky then declared this holiday to be an official event to be observed on the first Sunday in October every year.

Observing Change A Light Day

This holiday can be observed simply by replacing old incandescent bulbs with modern LED bulbs. This will save electricity, and since LED bulbs last longer, it also means that people will save on bulbs in the long run.