November 25, 2024 by Daniel Hancock (‘26)
Each year, Rockefeller Center picks out a Christmas Tree to display in the center of Rockefeller Plaza, in Midtown Manhattan. Rockefeller Center’s workers decorate the tree with colorful and varying ornaments, and after this process, the tree is lit throughout the month of December. It has become an iconic New York destination for the time it stays in the plaza and is a staple for New York at Christmas time.
Traditionally a Norway Spruce 75 feet tall and 45 feet in diameter, is selected for display-one definitely too tall to fit in any household! These trees are from New York and surrounding states, so they are fairly local. Last year, their tree was chopped down in Vestal New York, only a drive away from Binghamton and was a whopping 80 feet tall and weighed 12 tons! This year’s tree comes from West Stockbridge, Massachusetts. It is 70 years old, standing at 74 feet and weighing 11 tons. It took a long journey on a large custom telescoping trailer-that can hold trees up to 125 feet tall- and arrived at Rockefeller Plaza on November 7th, waiting to be lit on the 4th of December to officially kick off New York City’s Christmas.
The history of the Rockefeller Tree dates back to 1931, when workers at Rockefeller Center decided to purchase and decorate a 20-foot-tall fir tree to display in the center of the plaza, with their families joyfully decorating it with homemade garlands. Then, in 1933, Rockefeller Center decided to make the plaza’s tree an annual tradition. That year, they held the first annual tree lighting.
Throughout the years, the process has developed, and decorations have changed, but the idea and Christmas spirit has remained the same. Trees are brought in, decorated, then lit and displayed in Rockefeller Plaza. Trees have come from all over for the past 80 years, but West Stockbridge has been the farthest location a tree has traveled from to NYC. In 2004, an addition to the tradition was the iconic Swarovski Star, the tree’s topper of crystals and lights now featuring over 3 million crystals.
For those interested in seeing the tree being lit and the music and festivities centered around the event, the lighting will be broadcasted on December 4th on NBC. Using 50,000 LED lights, on 5 miles of wire, the tree then is illuminated every day following December 4th until mid January. The lights will be on from 5 am to midnight throughout December and will be on for all of Christmas. For those visiting New York City during December, the Rockefeller tree is a must-see.
To learn more about this New York Christmas tradition, visit these links:
Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree Lighting | NYC Winter Events
Rockefeller Center’s 74-Foot Christmas Tree Begins Journey to NYC – Newsweek
