Read time: 7 min.

I love looking at Christmas lights. Seeing them today evokes a sense of nostalgia and tradition, but their appearance prompted a feeling of wonder when I was a kid. It was always better when companies got in on the action by making festive landmarks out of their facilities, and few did it better than Guide Lamp in Anderson.

General Motors once had a ubiquitous presence in the middle of Indiana. At its peak, the company’s Delco Remy and Guide Lamp subsidiaries in Anderson employed 25,000 people- a staggering 35% of the city’s population¹! GM was forced to arrange its work schedules so regular joes could navigate the city’s streets during shift changes².

Guide might have grown to prominence in Anderson, but it was founded in Cleveland in 1906. The company’s early experiments with electricity were compelling during a time when automotive headlamps were powered by acetylene, and General Motors snapped it up as part of its Delco Remy division in 1928³. In Anderson, GM established Guide at the corner of 25th Street and Arrow Avenue.

Guide was separated from Delco in 1930⁴. Although it focused on headlamps, taillights, turn signals, and other stamped assemblies, Guide churned out P-39 spinner noses, cartridge cases, and FP-45 Liberator pistols during World War II⁵. In 1947, the company became the first to supply the automotive industry with plastic taillight lenses⁶.

By the 1960s, Guide Lamp’s vast compound stretched half a mile along State Road 67 in southwestern Anderson. The company’s enthusiasm for the holiday season never abated despite its colossal growth, and Guide dedicated its December newsletters to the celebration of Christmas.

“As another year in this wonderful country of ours draws to a close, let us reflect upon our blessings and continue to reaffirm our faith in the future, and pray for the fulfillment of the Christmas Promise of “on earth peace, good will toward men,” wrote factory manager C.B. Cleaver in the 1956 Guide Light newsletter⁷. 

“It is again my privilege to greet you during the Holiday Season,” Cleaver wrote the following year. “As time moves on, each succeeding year seems to be more momentous, more enlightening, more progressive and more interesting than the previous one…My warmest and heartiest greetings to you and yours for a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year⁸.”

General Motors reached its apex in those years following World War II⁹, but things changed in the 1970s and worsened in the 80s. In 1975, Guide Lamp was renamed Guide Division. It merged with Fisher Body in 1984, and was spun off altogether in 1998¹⁰. The new company abruptly shuttered its Anderson operation in 2007¹¹ and demolition started shortly afterwards.

Here’s the view from Guide Lamp’s Christmas postcard today. After the factory was torn down, the property was remediated and prepared for redevelopment. Today, an Italian manufacturer of polypropylene compounds operates two new facilities on the site. Other businesses continue to operate in Guide Lamp’s old Plant 7 across the street.

I never got to see Guide Lamp’s Christmas lights in person, but the old postcard showing them in their splendor is still one of my favorites. The southwest side of Anderson is less festive these days, but I’m beginning to realize that the ways we celebrate the holidays evolve over time. Welcome or not, navigating emotions tied to past traditions like Guide Lamp’s decorations or the big family Christmas from childhood is part of the evolution.

Ultimately, figuring out how to celebrate Christmas as things change around us takes a willingness to embrace the evolving nature of life, let go of expectations rooted in the past, and discover new sources of joy and meaning in the present. If you’re like me, it’s not an easy process! My Christmas will be pretty lonely this year, but finding different ways to celebrate doesn’t mean that we have to forsake our cherished memories.

I might be off-base, but I think we can ensure that the spirit of the holidays continues to touch our lives at every stage of our journey by finding a balance between treasured traditions and new experiences. Although Christmas is no longer celebrated at Guide Lamp, memories of seasons past will continue to live on as long as those who were there still celebrate them.

Sources Cited
1 Corley, C. (2009, July 15). Skeletons Of The Auto Industry Linger Across U.S. NPR. Web. Retrieved December 14, 2023.
2 Peters, J., & Maynard, M. (2006, February 20). Company Town Relies on G.M. Long After Plants Have Closed. The New York Times. Web. Retrieved December 14, 2023. 
3 Pound, A. (1934). The Turning Wheel;: The story of General Motors through twenty-five years, 1908-1933 [Doubleday, Doran & Company Inc.]. New York. book.
4 Dick, S. (2006, October 21). Shining example. The Anderson Herald Bulletin. Web. Retrieved December 14, 2023. 
5 Jackson, D. (n.d.). Guide Lamp Division of General Motors in World War II. The American Automobile Industry in World War Two. Web. Retrieved December 14, 2023. 
6 Moore, S. (2023, November 26). Acrylic Rear Lens Enters SPE Auto Hall of Fame. Plastics Today. Web. Retrieved December 15, 2023. 
7 Guide Light (1956, Christmas). Guide Lamp Division of General Motors [Anderson]. Newsletter. 
8 Guide Light (1957, Christmas). Guide Lamp Division of General Motors [Anderson]. Newsletter. 
9 DeBord, M. (2019, August 20). How General Motors rose, fell – and rose again to become the top US automaker. Business Insider. Web. Retrieved December 15, 2023.
10 Guide Corporation Launches Automotive Lighting Business (1998, November 5). The Lafayette Journal and Courier. p. 37. 
11 Anderson’s Guide plant shuts down (2007, January 12). WTHR [Indianapolis]. Web. Retrieved December 15, 2023.
12 Schneider, J. (2007, December 15). 9:36 p.m. Guide Demolition begins – Anderson. The Anderson Herald-Bulletin. Web. Retrieved December 15, 2023.