IPL Question #1: Red Doors

I answered my first question as an Internet Public Librarian today!

Q: what did it mean when they painted their door red in Boston, Mass?

My answer:

Hello from the Internet Public Library!

Thank you for your question about the symbolism of red doors.

I've found a few explanations for red doors.  They all seem to be
based on word-of-mouth instead of on real, concrete information. 
I can't find any scholarly sources that say definitively what red
doors mean, but there are lots of loosely-linked ideas on the
Internet.  They all seem to be based on Christian beliefs that go
back to a quotation in Exodus.

To show you this Bible passage, I first found a Bible website
that was recommended by the Internet Public Library.  I found one
called 

BibleGateway.com.  

I searched for "red" and "blood" and found a bible verse that may
be the answer.  It's in the Book of Exodus, Chapter 12.  It
states that God was to take a firstborn son from every home, but
those that believed in him should put blood on their door
(coloring the door red) and he would pass over those houses,
keeping them safe.  You can see the Bible verse here:

http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?book_id=2&chapter=12&version=31

Since that link is so long, here's a TinyURL that will take you
to the same place:

http://tinyurl.com/344wu8

I found many sources on Google where regular people had different
ideas on why doors were red, as well, usually stating that the
red, a symbolism for smeared blood, meant that inside was a safe
place of Christian love and protection.  I'm happy to give you
some examples of different ideas that people believe.

I also found some information on a site called everything2.com. 
This website is just like Wikipedia- all of its information is
submitted by regular people, so it's not a source you can verify,
but it's a good place to start.  They have an entry on red doors
that you can read at this link:

http://www.everything2.com/index.pl?node_id=1405775

To take the theory a little bit further, even, there is also a
theory that Martin Luther posted his 95 Theses on the doors of
the Wittenberg Church which were red, and other churches painted
their doors red to signify that they were also Reformed churches
with the same beliefs as Martin Luther.

I found evidence that Lutheran churches do agree with the
symbolism of the red door.  The Trinity Lutheran Church for
instance, calls their monthly newsletter "The Red Door."  You can
check it out at the following link:

http://www.tlcnc.org/

and clicking on "newsletter."  It doesn't offer an explanation of
why the newsletter is named that, though.

Another person that agrees that Lutheran churches and Christian
churches in general use red doors as symbolism of their beliefs
writes a beautiful summary that accompanies a photo of a red
door.  You can check it out at:

http://blog.webshots.com/?p=156

In Indiana, the Red Door Home Inspection Company does a great job
of summing up why they named their company after the "red door"
tradition.  You can read their take on the symbolism of a red
door at 

http://www.reddoorhomeinspections.com/

Just scroll down on the main page to the section entitled "Why
The Name Red Door Home Inspections?"

So, as you can see (especially if you want to Google "red door"
in quotation marks like that yourself), there are many ideas of
why doors are painted red, but almost all of them have Christian
traditions going back to the Exodus Bible Passage. 
Unfortunately, there isn't a lot of official information from
reliable sources that can confirm it.

I hope that answered your question.  If you still have more
questions, or want more information about red doors, please write
back.  We're happy to help!

Thanks for visiting the IPL!

Kristen