For many years Detroit Edison, who used to be Southeast Michigan's primary source of electric energy had small office locations in many neighborhoods and suburban cities. And for decades you could take your burned out incadescent bulbs and trade them for new Edison brand light bulbs. For free. You could also go there to get your table radio, lamps, toasters or other small electrical items for repair at a very modest price. And also pay your light bill there too. I remember many times, when visiting my Grandma, being sent to the local Edison office(a five minute or so walk from her house) with a brown paper shopping bag full of burned out bulbs and trading them for new ones, taking them out of the huge bins they had in front of the counter. And a few times sent there with a ticket stub and a small amount of cash to pick up her toaster or a radio she had there for repair. For a few years after moving into my first house I too, went there for free replacement bulbs. That all ended in the mid '70's when some d o u c h e sued Detroit Edison to stop giving out the free bulbs because he owned a drugstore somewhere that stocked light bulbs for sale and he claimed Edison offering free replacements was hurting his profits. He won his case and Edison quit giving out the bulbs, and within a year the man's store was doing such poor business he had to close up shop and he moved it somewhere down in Florida. Good riddance to the Motherjumper.
Whitefang