The first New Year's Eve Ball was commissioned by Adolph Ochs, publisher of The New York Times, per the Times Square Alliance. Ochs began throwing New Year's Eve parties in 1905 to celebrate the ...
The ball drop in Times Square has a rich history behind it. Each New Year’s Eve, a sea of people gather in New York City to watch the iconic ball drop from the top of One Times Square.
But when the city outlawed the fireworks, The Times' chief electrician Walter Palmer came up with the idea to drop a lighted ... of One Times Square, featuring the New Year's ball.