So, how many of you watched the New Years Eve ball drop in Times Square this year? I found some interesting facts about this very American tradition:
Did you know???
The actual notion of a ball "dropping" to signal the passage of time dates back long before New Year's Eve was ever celebrated in Times Square? The first "time-ball" was installed atop England's Royal Observatory at Greenwich in 1833. This ball would drop at one o'clock every afternoon, allowing the captains of nearby ships to precisely set their chronometers (a vital navigational instrument).
In 1845, at the request of the secretary of the United States Navy, the Naval observatory installed a ball on top of the telescope dome on Observatory Hill. The ball was dropped every day precisely at noon. Before Washington, D.C., was heavily developed, viewing the ball drop allowed residents in the area and people aboard ships in the Potomac River to set their timepieces.
In 1907 (that's 100 years ago!!) the New Year's Eve Ball made its maiden descent from the flagpole atop One Times Square. This original Ball, constructed of iron and wood and adorned with 100 25-watt light bulbs, was 5 feet in diameter and weighed 700 pounds. In 1920, a 400 pound ball made entirely of iron replaced the original.
The Ball has been lowered every year since 1907, with the exceptions of 1942 and 1943, when its use was suspended due to the wartime restrictions of lights in New York City. The crowds who still gathered in Times Square in those years greeted the New Year with a moment of silence followed by chimes ringing out from One Times Square.
From 1981 to 1988 the ball was replaced with red light bulbs and a green stem due to the "I Love New York" campaign.
In 1995 the ball becomes computerized, aluminum coated, adorned with rhinestones and has a strobe lighting system.
And the newest ball that has been used since 2000 gets totally updated with new technology and Waterford Crystal. It weighs a little over 1,000 lbs., measures six feet in diameter and has all sorts of special effects lighting, each year following a different theme.
How many of you can remember when Guy Lombardo hosted the ball drop on CBS? I know I'm dating myself but I remember it well. I never was one for staying up late but I remember my parents and older siblings would stay up and watch the ball drop.
Just seems to be the way to spend New Years Eve, doesn't it?
1 comments:
That's so interesting! I am not a late nighter either. I remember the last time I watched the ball drop was 2000 and that was just to see what would happen!
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