Dropping into the New Year
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For over 100 years, crowds have gathered to watch the ball drop in Times Square in New York City on New Year’s Eve as the clock strikes midnight.
The tradition began back in 1907 when the owner of the
New York Times, Alfred Ochs, decided to replace the typical fireworks display that had previously marked the festive occasion with a bigger spectacle. He contracted Jacob Starr, an electrician and metalworker, to construct a New Year’s Eve ball. Made of iron and wood and adorned with 100 25-watt light bulbs, the ball was 5 feet in diameter and weighed 700 pounds.