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In 1901, the owner of the power and light company in Livermore, Calif., gave that Bay Area town's volunteer firefighters a four-watt bulb to help them find their equipment in the dark. That lightbulb, made of carbon filament and hand-blown glass, has been burning ever since, and is thought to be the world's longest continuously burning bulb. This story inspired Janet Nolan to write The Firehouse Light, a May release from Tricycle Press. Illustrated by Marie Lafrance, the picture book chronicles the myriad changes that occur in the town—notably in firefighting equipment and techniques—over the decades, as the steadfast bulb continues to glow.

The long-lived lightbulb has achieved celebrity status: it has caught the attention of Ripley's Believe It or Not and the Guinness Book of World Records, has been the subject of numerous newspaper and magazine articles, and even has its own Webcam and dedicated Web site.

Nolan can't recall exactly when or where she first heard about the bulb, but does remember her reaction. "I walked around in an excited daze for a while," she says. "I kept thinking of all the things that have happened—all the things that have been invented and all the wars fought —while this tiny lightbulb kept burning. In our disposable society, it struck me as awe-inspiring."

The author explains that she initially wrote the book as "almost a literary timeline" encompassing many historical details, but eventually she streamlined the story. "Rather than top-load the book with historical happenings, I focused in on the town and on firefighting, since obviously the firehouse is where the light has always burned," she says. The author explains that she spent many hours at her hometown library in Oak Park, Ill., "reading books about different eras to get a feel for everything that was going on during each decade—in areas like transportation and communication."

To unearth particulars about the bulb's hometown, Nolan contacted the Livermore Heritage Guild, an information resource for those interested in the town's history. "The people there couldn't have been more helpful," she comments. "They sent me lots of newspaper articles and old photos and helped me research details—like at what point in time the town had only one stoplight. I really wanted to get it right."

Several retired Livermore firefighters and staffers at various firefighting museums provided Nolan with useful information about the evolution of firefighting gear, methods, and vehicles. And she paid a visit to her local fire station. "The firefighters there were wonderful," she says. "They showed me around and explained how everything worked. They even let me get on the trucks. I wanted to understand what I was writing about."

Nolan submitted The Firehouse Light to Tricycle Press, which is located in Berkeley, less than an hour's drive from Livermore. Editor Kim Keller, who acquired the book, notes that the story's multiple strands appealed to her. "I loved the intersection of history, firefighting, and the extraordinary nature of the light bulb burning for more than 100 years," she observes. "I think the book will appeal to children on many levels." Nolan credits Keller for suggesting she pare down the original text and focus more closely on firefighting history.Keller lined up Lafrance to illustrate the book after discovering samples of her art online. "I wanted to find an artist who could give this book a look that was historical, but not overly realistic," she recalls. "In the book, Marie stays true to her folk-art style while convincingly depicting the passage of time."

Though she hadn't heard of the Livermore bulb, Lafrance, a Montreal resident who lived in San Francisco years ago, was immediately drawn to the project. "The text had poetry to it, and I was fascinated by the light that is always there," she says. Given what she calls her art's "vintage quality," she remarks that she "had more fun" with the older scenes, "since it's more stylistically interesting to me to illustrate something that happened 100 years ago. The fire trucks then were much nicer looking than they are today."

Her research for The Firehouse Light opened her eyes to today's firefighting vehicles as well. "When you do a book, you get so involved in the subject matter," Lafrance explains. "I thought about firetrucks for such a long time that now, when I see one, I get a pang of recognition. I want to say, ‘Oh, I know you!' "

Nolan will meet Livermore firefighters—and finally see the famed lightbulb—in June, when she travels to California for several author appearance, including a launch party at Towne Center Books in neighboring Pleasanton and a signing at Livermore Heritage Guild. "I am very excited about meeting so many people who helped me with the book, and seeing the bulb at last," she says. "Some people may doubt that this is a true story, but by my way of thinking, there is no doubt about it. Of course it's true. I am a very big supporter of this little bulb!"

The Firehouse Light by Janet Nolan, illus. by Marie Lafrance. Tricycle Press, $15.99 May ISBN 978-1-58246-298-1

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