The Christmas Tree at Rockefeller Center is a tradition in New York dating back to Christmas Eve, December 24th 1931. It began during the construction of Rockefeller Center, when workers decorated a small balsam fir tree with "strings of cranberries, garlands of paper, and even a few tin cans."
One of New York’s most famous landmarks, Rockefeller Center, located across the street from St. Patrick’s Cathedral and Saks Fifth Avenue, attracts visitors from all over the world and is generally a mad rush of people, a babel languages and exuberant holiday cheer. Sleigh bells ring. Music plays. And cameras flash away like crazy. It’s a must-see stop on the tourist track of the city during this time of year.
Visiting the tree every year—and taking a picture in front of it—was also a tradition in our family. One that we started when our daughter Lauren, who was born in December, was only a few weeks old. I hate to admit it, but the idea of a yearly family portrait in the same place at the same time wasn’t a Stoler original. Before Lauren was born I’d read an article about a family who posed for a yearly snapshot with their daughter on the doorstep of the house in which they were living at the time. The purpose was to chronicle her growth as well as document the places they’d lived. It seemed like a great idea, and when I had my daughter, we got the Christmas ball rolling as it were, and took her to the tree for one of her first outings. We continued this with one or two interruptions until she was 21.
Last year, I created a collage of 19 of the shots we’d taken, plus one from her 25th birthday, and gave it to Lauren as a Christmas gift. To me, it was a great way for her to look back on the holidays we’d shared as a family and to give her a gift that would always have a special meaning. I know that she loved receiving it as much as I did creating it.
Now, a few facts about the Tree:
The Rockefeller Christmas Tree is usually lit on the Wednesday after Thanksgiving. This year it was
December 2nd and the lighting was broadcast nationwide on NBC. The tree will come down on January 7th.
The tree is usually a Norway Spruce, which must be a minimum of 65 feet high and and 35 feet wide. Management prefers the tree to be taller—75 to 90 feet—and proportionally wide.
Over 5 miles of lights and a star are the only decorations on the tree.
The tree is recycled and over 3 tons of mulch is donated to the Boy Scouts.
Merry Christmas everyone! And Happy New Year!
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11 comments:
Hi Cathi,
What a wonderful post. Thanks for telling us the history of the tree and sharing a tradition of the Stoler family.
Terrie
Love it, and what a sweet tradition! If I weren't in elf shoes already, this post would've gotten me right into them, Cathi!
Thank you Terrie & Clare.
This year's tree is as beautiful as always.
A friend sent an email today with trees from around the world, starting with NY's. If you'd like to see them, I'll forward the email to you both.
Cathi
Sure, Fire away! I may steal the content for a blog post later- ya never know : )
Very cool tradition, Cathi! And what a fascinating history of the tree.
That would be great Cathi.
Terrie
A great post about two great traditions, Cathi!
When I worked in midtown, I always made sure to walk to the office in the morning and then back to Penn Station at night rather than take the subway so I could see the tree. It's always awe-inspiring, lit or not.
Thanks for nice info.
We wish you a Merry Christmas.
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what a wonderful family tradition!
thanks for sharing it.
Connecting the universal symbols of the season to the the real live family experiences - a winning combo!
Both the Christmas tree symbol and the family that connects to it gives us a sense of heart-warming tradition in a world that sometimes seems to be spinning out of control. Thanks!
Best of everything to you and your families during this great holiday season.
What a fun family tradition. And I loved the details about the tree.
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