Every holiday season, the small town of Minden in south-central Nebraska becomes Christmas City.
Thousands of Christmas lights illuminate the Kearney County Courthouse in Minden on Nov. 29, 2024.
On residential streets and in Minden’s business district along North Colorado Avenue, Christmas lights and decorations adorn houses and businesses. The Kearney County Courthouse is the centerpiece of the colorful display of more than 12,000 lights.
Accompanying the lights and decorations are a series of celebrations reminiscent of the Christmas spirit of Bedford Falls from the classic movie “It’s a Wonderful Life.”
“The town certainly takes pride in being the Christmas City,” said Josh Jorgensen, executive director of the Minden Chamber of Commerce.
Minden’s Christmas City celebration dates back more than a century, about one decade after household electricity came to the town.
A local light commissioner, J.W. Haws, hand-dipped around 100 light bulbs in Christmas colors. He then strung them …