On what date did the first Times Square New Year's Eve ball drop welcome the year 1908?

The first Times Square New Year's Eve ball drop took place on December 31, 1907, welcoming 1908.

The celebration was created after New York's authorities banned fireworks used for earlier New Year's festivities. The New York Times, whose headquarters gave the area its name, organized a new spectacle at the newly developed Times Square. A lighted ball descended from a flagpole atop the Times building at midnight.

The original ball was made of iron and wood, decorated with electric lights and about five feet in diameter. The event became an annual tradition, though the ball was not lowered during several wartime years when blackout restrictions applied.

The date is often misstated as January 1, 1908. The drop happened late on December 31, 1907; the new year began immediately afterward. Times Square's current One Times Square building replaced the newspaper's earlier headquarters role but retained the tradition's location.