The houses and streets of Natchez are bright this holiday season with luminaries and electric lights showing off neighborhood Christmas spirit.

From the subdued decorations of downtown’s historic district to the megawatt magnificence of Village Green, The Trees, and Broadmoor, each community expends time and energy to put on a holiday face.

Roy Winkworth said he and his wife Barbara moved from Village Green to South Commerce Street this year and have changed their Christmas display to accommodate that transition.

&uot;Downtown is very subdued this year,&uot; Winkworth said. &uot;It’s in keeping with the Victorian nature of the downtown area.&uot;

David Preziosi, City Planner for Natchez, agrees.

&uot;I think the traditional types of decoration — swagging garland, ribbons and bows — used through downtown because of course they didn’t have little electric lights 100 years ago,&uot; Preziosi said.

Downtown is not without a few lights, but generally the display is low wattage.

Cynthia Dollar lives on Pecanwood Drive in The Trees subdivision off U.S. 61 South and her neighborhood has agreed to light the way for visitors.

&uot;Last year we decided that we would string little white lights along the property lines and connect them and embellish from there,&uot;&160;Dollar said.

The Dollar house has used a Winnie the Pooh character theme for many years because the characters were their daughter’s favorites. Even though their daughter is 20 years old now, the Dollars continue to decorate with Piglet, Pooh and Tigger.

Even though each house chooses its own theme or decorative style, Dollar said almost every house has put up the little white lights that run along the roadside, directing people into the neighborhood.

&uot;It makes a nice display for people to being their children,&uot; Dollar said.

And bring them they have.

Dollar said they’ve had many spectators drive slowly through the neighborhood to admire the community handiwork.

Pat Harris, of 141 Otis Redding Drive in the Broadmoor Community is also stirring up some traffic by decorating a large cedar tree in her front yard with thousands of lights.

Called the Friendship Tree, it now has 5,800 lights on it, Harris said.

&uot;It’s such a wonderful thing,&uot; she said.

&uot;Everyone in the neighborhood is enjoying it –&160;cars just circle and circle.&uot;

Harris will leave the lights in the tree year-round once the holiday has come and gone, but Dollar said the lights in her neighborhood will likely be gone before New Year’s Day.

&uot;We haven’t decided officially when to take them down, but we all agreed to have them up by Dec. 11,&uot; she said.

&uot;The lights will probably be up a few days after Christmas.&uot;