What New Year's Eve event has been held at New York City's Times Square since 1907?

The ball drop has been held at New York City's Times Square since 1907.

The first Times Square Ball descended on 31 December 1907, welcoming 1908. The New York Times had organized celebrations near its new headquarters, and a ball lowered from the building became a replacement for fireworks after restrictions were placed on pyrotechnic displays. The inaugural ball was made from iron and wood and carried electric lamps.

The ceremony was suspended during the World War II blackout years of 1942 and 1943. People still gathered in Times Square, but the midnight moment was marked by a minute of silence followed by the ringing of church bells. The ball returned for the 1944 New Year's celebration.

The phrase “ball drop” is conventional even though the object is lowered in a controlled descent. The tradition has also survived redesigns, changes in broadcasting, and temporary crowd restrictions, making it one of the longest-running public New Year's Eve rituals in the United States.