After years of marking the New Year’s Eve countdown, the iconic Times Square ball has made its final descent, signaling both the start of 2025 and the end of an era. The glittering sphere, which has been watched by millions each year, is retiring to become part of a new immersive exhibit, joining its predecessors as a piece of history.
On Wednesday, Jan. 15, crowds formed in Times Square to witness the ball’s final 139-foot drop, not to mark a new year but to make room for a new iteration.
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“These balls have helped us take time and ring in the New Year throughout all of our lifetimes,” said Michael Phillips, president of Jamestown, the real estate firm that owns One Times Square. “Many of our memories are embedded in this.”
The Times Square ball’s retirement marks the end of a chapter. The ball has seen a number of iterations, from the first wooden version, weighing 700 pounds in 1907, to the current version, a six-ton sphere outfitted with Waterford crystals.
After lighting up the skies over Times Square for nearly two decades, the ball will join other historic versions in a new exhibit set to open this fall.
The new exhibit will allow visitors to explore the evolution of the Times Square ball. Organizers are planning to deliver an immersive experience to a tradition that has marked the passage of time for over a century.
[Kennedy Felton]
THE ICONIC TIMES SQUARE BALL, A SYMBOL OF NEW YEAR’S EVE CELEBRATIONS FOR OVER A CENTURY, IS BIDDING FAREWELL AFTER ONE LAST DROP.
A SEA OF THOUSANDS GATHERED IN TIMES SQUARE, CHEERING AS THE BALL DESCENDED TO SIGNAL THE START OF 2025.
THE BALL DROP IS A TRADITION DATING BACK TO 1907 – BUT THE BALL ITSELF HAS SEEN MORE THAN A FEW ITERATIONS OVER THE YEARS.
NOW, AFTER LIGHTING UP NEW YEAR’S EVE SINCE 2008, THIS TIMES SQUARE BALL WILL JOIN ITS PREDECESSORS—EACH A SYMBOL OF A DIFFERENT MOMENT IN HISTORY—IN A NEW EXHIBIT.
(“These balls have helped us take time and ring in the New Year throughout all of our lifetimes and many of our memories are embedded in this.” )
ON WEDNESDAY, THE BALL MADE ITS FINAL DESCENT – NOT TO MARK A NEW YEAR – BUT TO MAKE ROOM FOR A NEW ERA.FROM A BALL WEIGHING 700 POUNDS MADE OUT OF WOOD TO A SIX TON SPHERE OUTFITTED WITH CRYSTALS…EVERY VERSION OF THE BALL HAS MADE ITS MARK.
THE EXHIBIT OPENING THIS FALL, WILL OFFER VISITORS AN IMMERSIVE JOURNEY THROUGH THE BALL’S LEGENDARY PAST.
FOR STRAIGHT ARROW NEWS, I’M KENNEDY FELTON.
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