Slog

News & Arts

Line Out

Music & the City
at Night

« Today in Right-Wing Paranoia | Fiscal Cliff Diving »

Friday, December 28, 2012

History The Origins of the New Year's Eve Ball Drop in Times Square

Posted by Cienna Madrid on Fri, Dec 28, 2012 at 11:25 AM

That narrow building rising all by itself, then the second tallest in New York City, is the just-finished headquarters of The New York Times newspaper. Its publisher, Alfred Ochs, had successfully lobbied city leaders to change Longacre Square's name to Times Square earlier that year. He then resolved to throw a New Year's Eve celebration that would be the talk of the town. "An all-day street festival culminated in a fireworks display set off from the base of the tower," according to an official history published by the Times Square District Management Association, "and at midnight the joyful sound of cheering, rattles and noisemakers from the over 200,000 attendees could be heard, it was said, from as far away as Croton-on-Hudson, thirty miles north."

An annual event was born—but two years later, the city prohibited the fireworks display. "Ochs was undaunted," the official history continues...

FacebookShare

Comments (6) RSS

Newest First Unregistered On Registered On Add a comment

@ 5 That Neighborhood is not typical of the upper east side. I used to live there and delivered groceries as a kid. It has always been affordable compared to the rest of Manhattan. Most of the buildings are 4 or 5 story walk-ups and the apartments are pretty small. For rent like that Its probably on an upper floor.

Posted by wl on December 28, 2012 at 1:11 PM

#4

2 Bedrooms at 1606 Second Ave for $2,000

http://www.renthop.com/listings/1606_sec…

2 Bedrooms at York Ave & E 77th St. for $2,000

http://www.renthop.com/listings/york_ave…

Posted by Supreme Ruler Of The Universe

on December 28, 2012 at 12:24 PM

John, cheap compared to what? Do you have any clue what rent in Manhattan is? Why do you think so many people do the dreaded bridge and tunnle thing? It may be off just a hair from a highpoint in 2007 but a teeny basic studio still cost more than a large luxury Belltown apartment.

There may be a little bit of legacy rent controlled housing left but you nor I will never find it. The few people who have it will never move.

Posted by wl on December 28, 2012 at 12:16 PM

200,000 is a lot of people...by some estimates not much more in orders of magnitude than what show up today!

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/02/nyregi…

Of course Manhattan reached its peak population of 3 million around 1900 and has been overall declining since.

Another question I'm asking is..why are UES apartments in NYC seeming so cheap these days...

Posted by Supreme Ruler Of The Universe

on December 28, 2012 at 12:03 PM

@1

I was there a year later and didn't know what I was in for. The closest I could get was to the street corner of one of the sidestreets off Times Square, so essentially tons of people were just jammed there listening.

I'm not sure I"m crazy about the term "ball drop" anyway.

Posted by seatackled on December 28, 2012 at 11:55 AM

I was at Times Square for New Year's eve 2001 into 2002. Had to get there at 6pm to get a halfway decent spot, then you're corralled in with a bunch of strangers (fun small talk though, everyone was from different parts of the country). Freezing cold. No alcohol allowed. Run like a Police State. Then 30 minutes until the ball and immediately afterwards, immediately!, you're shooed away and they start to clean up.

It was super patriotic given that 9/11 had just happened a few months earlier though. Lots of firefighter worship. Rudy Giuliani at the height of his popularity.

I suppose it's worth doing once in your life, I don't think I'd ever do it again though.

Posted by Urgutha Forka on December 28, 2012 at 11:39 AM