Tis the Season for Collingwood Lights

We certainly hope it’s true, that the “Collingwood Lights” are on this year. 

There’s nothing quite like them. Located most years — more than 20 — at 1601 Collingwood in Alexandria’s Collingwood neighborhood, they’re at the top of lights aficionado Holly Zell’s list: “My top favorite...Extremely large house and yard with beautifully done lights everywhere! Owner makes all wireframes and its all animated to music. I loved the ground cover done in green lights with the larger red (berry) lights.”

Her Web site, “Holly’s Tacky Christmas Lights,” that points out some of the most amazing light displays in the Northern Virginia area, notes that Collingwood was featured on TLC, on a program called “Invasion of the Christmas Lights.”

Here’s what homeowner Bill Vaughan has to say about his lights display, from a note on his Web site, called, what else? Collingwood Lights

I began decorating our house for Christmas 21 years ago, each year changing the display as well as adding more to it. My house is located across the street from a retirement home and about 15 years ago, shortly after Christmas as I was taking down the lights, a women stopped to talk. She explained that she worked at the home and wanted to thank me for the annual display. She went on to mention how much it meant to the residents and one individual in particular.

She told me Mrs. Edwards was the house expert on the display and how much joy and anticipation the display bought her each year. Then she went on to say Mrs. Edwards passed away a few days after Christmas and she wanted to thank me for the comfort it brought to her in those final days. For the first time since I began stringing Christmas lights I realized that this was bigger than decorating the house for the family, It meant much, much more.

I look back at that year as the beginning of what has become the largest animated residential display in Virginia and for many who have visited us, a part of their own family’s Christmas tradition.

Merry Christmas,

Bill Vaughan