Text size:

A ball of New Years history

By David Freedlander | dfreedlander@am-ny.com

December 31, 2007

NEW YORK - The hundreds of thousands of revelers who will throng to Times Square Monday night to whoop in the New Year won't just be celebrating the dawn of 2008. They'll also be taking part in a now century-old city tradition.

Since 1907, hundreds of thousands of New Yorkers have crammed into a few blocks in an area known as the crossroads of the world to count down the waning seconds of a calendar year and watch the ball make its slow descent down the flagpole.

Of course, like the rest of the city, the 100-year-old celebration has changed a lot over the intervening decades.

That first ball, sponsored by New York Times publisher Alfred Ochs to celebrate the opening of the paper's new headquarters, was a 700-pound iron and wood concoction that was lit with 100 25-watt incandescent bulbs.

This year's version will be made from Waterford crystal, and weighs more than 1,000 pounds and feature 9,576 energy--efficient LEDs. The blocks around 42nd Street will be as packed as they were that night 100 years ago, when, according to newspaper reports, the sounds of the revelry could be heard for miles, but those shivering in the new year at Times Square will be joined by millions more watching on television.

"New Year's Eve is a big party, the reason it means so much is that it resonates at a deeper level of letting go of the past and looking forward with a sense of optimism," said Tim Tompkins, president of the Times Square Alliance, which hosts the celebration.

Besides the ball drop, this year's event will feature performances from music stars like Lenny Kravitz, Kid Rock and Carrie Underwood. Also, confetti bearing the new year's wishes of people from around the world will rain down at the stroke of midnight.

"New Year's Eve in Times Square reinforces the wonderfully myopic and self-centered view we have of ourselves as being the center of the world," Timbers added. "It really is the entire world that is watching us."

The ball drop has grown from a local celebration to a national or even global one since that ball began its first descent a hundred years ago. At 11:59 from here to California revelers raise a glass and join in the party at Times Square.

"It really reinforces the desire for community," said Michael O'Malley, author of "Keeping Watch: A History of American Time." "It's part of our national identity where everybody all over the country imagines they are feeling the same thing at the same time. In that way it's a wonderful thing."

If you go:
Get there early. Times Square will be closed to cars starting at 3:30, and it's recommended you arrive by around 6 pm.
No backpacks, large bags, or alcohol.
Take public transport. Most Times Square stations will be closed New Year's Eve, but the MTA will be running extra trains until 3 am.
Thank your street sweepers. Last year they picked up 42 tons of trash
As Tim Tompkins, president of the Times Square Alliance put it, "Come prepared with the spirit of letting go of the things of 2007 you don't want and hoping for the things you do."