Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree

Selection and decoration

Trees are traditionally donated to Rockefeller Center, which in turn donates the lumber after display. Until his death in 2009, the late David Murbach, Manager of the Gardens Division of Rockefeller Center, scouted for the desired tree in upstate New York and surrounding states, and even Ottawa, Canada.

The trees are now scouted by Erik Pauzé, Head Gardener at Rockefeller Center. Pauzé visits nurseries throughout the tri-state area while keeping his eye out for one-of-a-kind backyard trees. Trees may also be submitted for consideration through Rockefeller Center's web site. Pauzé and his team choose each year’s tree based on its heartiness and “Christmas tree shape,” as well as its ability to support the heavy ornaments.

Once a tree is selected, a crane supports the tree while it is cut, then moved to a custom telescoping trailer able to transport trees up to 125 feet (38 m) tall, although the width of city streets around Rockefeller Center limits the height of the tree to 100 feet (30 m). Local business Christmas Tree Brooklyn provides support in delivering the tree safely into the city. On its way to Manhattan, the tree is often dressed in giant red bows or banners extending holiday greetings to witnesses. Trucks, barges, and even a transport plane have all been used to help the tree make the trip.

Once at Rockefeller Center, the tree is supported by four guy-wires attached at its midpoint and by a steel spike at its base. Scaffolding is erected around the tree to assist workers in hanging about 50,000 multi-colored LED lights and the star top. The crystal star that has topped the tree since 2004 is 9.5 feet (2.9 m) in diameter and weighs 550 pounds (250 kg). This "Swarovski Star," containing 25,000 Swarovski crystals, 1 million facets, and LED lights, was created by German artist Michael Hammers.

History

Although the official Christmas tree tradition at Rockefeller Center began in 1933 (the year 30 Rockefeller Plaza opened), an unofficial tradition began during the Depression-era construction of the Center, when workers decorated a smaller 20 foot (6.1 m) balsam fir with "strings of cranberries, garlands of paper, and even a few tin cans" on Christmas Eve (December 24, 1931), as recounted by Daniel Okrent in his history of Rockefeller Center. According to Rockefeller Center, workers pooled their money for that unlit tree, with the garlands made by workers' families.

With the lighting of the first official tree, a 50 footer (15 m), two years later, the tree became what Rockefeller Center dubbed "a holiday beacon for New Yorkers and visitors alike." A skating rink was opened below the tree in the plaza in 1936. Rockefeller Center has observed the tree to be "from the beginning ... a gathering place and reflection of what was happening in the world around it."

World War II ushered in simple, patriotic decorations, including red, white and blue unlit globes and painted wooden stars. In 1942, instead of one large tree, three more modest trees were raised, each decorated in one of the flag's colors. From 1944 until the war's end in 1945, the tree went unlit due to blackout regulations. After the war, the year of darkness was left behind, as six ultraviolet light projectors were employed to make it appear as though the tree’s 700 fluorescent globes were glowing in the dark.

By the 1950s, workers began using scaffolding to decorate the tree, as larger trees were accommodated. Before the decade was over, the decorating process called for 20 workers and nine days. 1951 marked the first time that NBC televised the tree lighting with a special on "The Kate Smith Show."

In 1969, artist Valerie Clarebout’s towering wire herald angels were added to the Channel Gardens in front of the tree near Fifth Avenue. Clarebout created the 12 sculptures using 75 points of metal wire each.

The 1971 tree, a 65-footer from East Montpelier, Vt., was the first to be mulched and recycled. It was turned into 30 three-bushel bags of mulch for the nature trails of upper Manhattan. Though the tree typically makes its journey on a truck bed, in 1998 it was flown in from Richfield, Ohio on the world’s largest transport plane.

1999 saw Rockefeller Center's tallest tree, a 100 foot (30 m) spruce from Killingworth, Conn. In 2001, following the events of September 11, the tree was again decorated in hues of red, white and blue.

In 2007, the tree went "green", converting to energy-efficient lighting with LEDs. The LEDs use 1,200 fewer kilowatts of electricity per day, enough to power a 2,000-square-foot home for a month.

Also since 2007, each year after display, the tree has been milled into lumber and donated to Habitat for Humanity for use in house construction.

The 2016 tree, a Norway Spruce from Oneonta, N.Y., is at 94 feet high the second tallest ever erected at Rockefeller Center. At 56 feet wide and over 30,000 pounds, the tree is the widest and heaviest to date, according to construction crews.

Since 2011, the tree lighting ceremony has been followed by the singing of Joy to the World. The decorated tree remains on display at Rockefeller Plaza, between West 48th and 51st Streets and Fifth and Sixth Avenues, at least through January 6 of the new year.

More than a half million people pass by the tree each day while it is on display, according to Rockefeller Center.

Broadcasting

Since 1997, the lighting ceremony has been broadcast live on NBC from 8:00 PM Eastern Standard Time to 9:00 PM Eastern Standard Time. The ceremony is hosted by Today Show anchors Matt Lauer, Al Roker, and Savannah Guthrie.

Yearly tree details