The Electric City Sign lights up Scranton's skyline at night! It was originally built to commemorate Scranton’s status as being one of the first cities in the United States to become electrified. The city's nickname "Electric City" began when electric lights were introduced in 1880 at the Dickson Manufacturing Company. In 1886, the United States' first successful streetcars powered only by electricity began operating in Scranton.
The original sign had 1,200 40-watt filament incandescent bulbs that featured circles of red and green, a flame of red and amber, and letters, rays, and sconces of white.
The sign was later turned off in the mid-20th century and sat dormant for several decades. It was relit in 2004 when the original 40-watt filament incandescent bulbs were replaced with all-white 11-watt bulbs, but many of the new bulbs burned out prematurely within a decade.
The sign was again renovated in 2014 with new one-watt LED bulbs that followed the original 1930s color scheme. La Fiesta Italiana, an Italian-American cultural organization, organized the fundraising effort for the latest renovation. The sign remains lit with these bulbs today.
