The Natchitoches Christmas Festival soon grew to mean more than Christmas lights strung across the downtown area. The first Christmas set piece, credited to Burgdorf, was a piece of metal twisted into a “Star of the East”, which was six feet across and lit with Christmas lights. It was placed on the banks of Cane River Lake across from Front Street. Charles Solomon, a City Utility employee, built the next “Star of the East” that was approximately twenty-one feet across. Solomon, known as Mr. Christmas, created forty set pieces during his four decades while serving as Chief Electrical Inspector. Charles Maggio helped Solomon create the set pieces after beginning work in the Power and Light Department in 1936. Solomon and Maggio volunteered their services to the city long after their retirement in 1973 and 1976, respectively.

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Until 2002, set pieces were permanently placed along the riverbank. The producers of the movie “YaYa Sisterhood” scouted Natchitoches for the filming of the movie. When they learned that the set pieces were permanent and would not be removed, the producers opted to film the movie in another city. Charles Brossett, a city utilities employee, began making removable set pieces along with the artist of the project Terry Elter. All of the set pieces have been rebuilt to enhance the splendor of Christmas and are removed at the conclusion of each season to enhance the serene beauty of the river and the ambiance of the downtown area. The famous set pieces can also be seen in the movie “Steel Magnolias”, which was produced in 1989 in Natchitoches.