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As the content creator behind Here In NYC on TikTok and Here In NY on Instagram, I love taking people on a tour throughout NYC highlighting hidden histroy and gems that make the city so special.

Did you know America's first public Christmas tree lighting happened in New York? How about the famous poem "Twas the Night Before Christmas" was written here? Where can you find the original manuscript of Charles Dickens' "A Christmas Carol?" Learn the answer to that and more holiday history on this tour given by John Friia, the creator behind Here In NY on Instagram and TikTok.

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Christmas in New York City: Discover Holiday Traditions that Started in NYC

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New York

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John Friia | Here In NY

Let’s deck the halls…or in this case the New York City streets with some Christmas cheer and learn about some holiday history that happened right here in the Big Apple. 

There’s a lot of Christmas traditions that started in the city. 

Can you name some of them? By the end of this tour, I hope you’ll walk away with some more Christmas history and New York City knowledge.

Let me just do a quick introduction for those of you who don’t know me…my name is John Friia. I am the content creator behind Here In NYC on TikTok and Here in NY on Instagram. I am also a licensed tour guide in the city. I love to take people on a journey throughout the Big Apple highlighting things to discover and historical spots that have gone unnoticed. 

We are kicking this off inside Madison Square Park. 

Now if you are not by the south side of the park, I would recommend heading that spot, basically close to Shake Shack, which is where the famous fast food restaurants all started in 2001 as a hot dog cart. 

Near Shake Shack you’ll see a pole with a star on top that is lit up…it’s a monument dedicated to some Christmas history that changed the way we celebrate the holidays in this country. 

Any guesses what happened here?

Madison Square Park is the site of the nation’s first public Christmas tree lighting, which happened back in December 1912. 

That first tree lighting was all the idea of Emilie Lee Herreshoff. She had an idea to put up a Christmas tree in public, so even those who could not afford a tree can still participate in a lighting ceremony. 

Who was Emilie?

She was the wife of a very well known scientist and she was really inspired by the other causes in the city that helped the poor. She brought her idea to the city and it was approved by the mayor. The tree ended up getting donated by the Adirondack Club and even the cost of transporting it from upstate to here was covered. 

That first lighting featured a 60-foot tree, which was brought down from the Adirondacks on a horse drawn truck. 

More than 23-hundred colored lights wrapped around the tree. Those lights were donated by the Edison Company. and when it was time to light it on Christmas Eve, it was reported that 25,000 people attended the first ceremony.

At the top of the tree was the star of Bethlehem. To help celebrate the lighting there was a local choir and band performing Christmas music. At the end of the festivities the lights were turned off, but they went on every night until New Year’s Eve.

It was such a success that it sparked a new trend...the following year lightings happening in Chicago, Baltimore and other cities across the country. 

I just want to go off on a little tangent. Remember when I mentioned that the lights were donated by the Edison Light Company?

Well, it is very fitting because Edward H. Johnson, who was the vice president of the Edison Light Company, is credited for having the first Christmas tree to be illuminated with electricity back in 1882 and it was inside a townhouse not far away from where you are right now. Johnson lived on 36th Street in Murray Hill.

Before the lights, any guesses how they lit the tree? With candles…needless to say it wasn’t too safe. 

On Johnson’s 6-foot tree there were 120 light bulbs, the size of walnuts, lighting up white, red, blue and other colors. The tree which was located near his window would draw crowds and change how people celebrated Christmas. Those first lights though were really for the wealthier New Yorkers.

In 1903, GE developed a string of Christmas lights that people could buy for $12 or more than $360 today.

Anyway, Johnson has widely been known as the Father of Electric Christmas Tree Lights and that started all in this city.

Back to Madison Square Park…today, a lot of the attention is given to the big tree in Rockefeller Center, but we would not have the tree up there if we didn’t have the celebration here first. 

That monument is called the Star of Hope and has a beautiful meaning behind it. The star is lit year round to remind us all of the holiday spirit. 

Before we leave, take a look at this year’s tree, which was just lit for its 111th year. 

After doing that we can start to walk west to Broadway over to Eighth Avenue…walking towards and past the Lego Store on the Fifth Avenue and down to 22nd Street. 

Once on 22nd Street make a right going west toward Ninth Avenue…you’ll come across a townhouse with a giant peace sign outside. When you get there that’s when you can start with our second stop.  


 \|||// Let’s deck the halls…or in this case the New York City streets with some Christmas cheer and learn about some holiday history that happened right here in the Big Apple. 

There’s a lot of Christmas traditions that started in the city. 

Can you name some of them? By the end of this tour, I hope you’ll walk away with some more Christmas history and New York City knowledge.

Let me just do a quick introduction for those of you who don’t know me…my name is John Friia. I am the content creator behind Here In NYC on TikTok and Here in NY on Instagram. I am also a licensed tour guide in the city. I love to take people on a journey throughout the Big Apple highlighting things to discover and historical spots that have gone unnoticed. 

We are kicking this off inside Madison Square Park. 

Now if you are not by the south side of the park, I would recommend heading that spot, basically close to Shake Shack, which is where the famous fast food restaurants all started in 2001 as a hot dog cart. 

Near Shake Shack you’ll see a pole with a star on top that is lit up…it’s a monument dedicated to some Christmas history that changed the way we celebrate the holidays in this country. 

Any guesses what happened here?

Madison Square Park is the site of the nation’s first public Christmas tree lighting, which happened back in December 1912. 

That first tree lighting was all the idea of Emilie Lee Herreshoff. She had an idea to put up a Christmas tree in public, so even those who could not afford a tree can still participate in a lighting ceremony. 

Who was Emilie?

She was the wife of a very well known scientist and she was really inspired by the other causes in the city that helped the poor. She brought her idea to the city and it was approved by the mayor. The tree ended up getting donated by the Adirondack Club and even the cost of transporting it from upstate to here was covered. 

That first lighting featured a 60-foot tree, which was brought down from the Adirondacks on a horse drawn truck. 

More than 23-hundred colored lights wrapped around the tree. Those lights were donated by the Edison Company. and when it was time to light it on Christmas Eve, it was reported that 25,000 people attended the first ceremony.

At the top of the tree was the star of Bethlehem. To help celebrate the lighting there was a local choir and band performing Christmas music. At the end of the festivities the lights were turned off, but they went on every night until New Year’s Eve.

It was such a success that it sparked a new trend...the following year lightings happening in Chicago, Baltimore and other cities across the country. 

I just want to go off on a little tangent. Remember when I mentioned that the lights were donated by the Edison Light Company?

Well, it is very fitting because Edward H. Johnson, who was the vice president of the Edison Light Company, is credited for having the first Christmas tree to be illuminated with electricity back in 1882 and it was inside a townhouse not far away from where you are right now. Johnson lived on 36th Street in Murray Hill.

Before the lights, any guesses how they lit the tree? With candles…needless to say it wasn’t too safe. 

On Johnson’s 6-foot tree there were 120 light bulbs, the size of walnuts, lighting up white, red, blue and other colors. The tree which was located near his window would draw crowds and change how people celebrated Christmas. Those first lights though were really for the wealthier New Yorkers.

In 1903, GE developed a string of Christmas lights that people could buy for $12 or more than $360 today.

Anyway, Johnson has widely been known as the Father of Electric Christmas Tree Lights and that started all in this city.

Back to Madison Square Park…today, a lot of the attention is given to the big tree in Rockefeller Center, but we would not have the tree up there if we didn’t have the celebration here first. 

That monument is called the Star of Hope and has a beautiful meaning behind it. The star is lit year round to remind us all of the holiday spirit. 

Before we leave, take a look at this year’s tree, which was just lit for its 111th year. 

After doing that we can start to walk west to Broadway over to Eighth Avenue…walking towards and past the Lego Store on the Fifth Avenue and down to 22nd Street. 

Once on 22nd Street make a right going west toward Ninth Avenue…you’ll come across a townhouse with a giant peace sign outside. When you get there that’s when you can start with our second stop.  


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Madison Square Park - Star of Hope

Tour Item

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We made it to the second spot. 

Welcome to the neighborhood of Chelsea, although some of you might already know this…and you might be wondering why are we here?

Well, one of the most famous Christmas poems can be traced back to this area of the city. I am talking about ‘Twas the Night Before Christmas by Clement Clarke Moore. 

I brought you to this street in particular because there is a townhouse that has an adorable display dedicated to the beloved poem.. You can’t miss it…the townhouse is on the southside of 22nd Street and has a giant peace sign outside. I will say the display usually goes up early-mid December, so depending on when you’re here it might not have changed from autumn to Christmas. 

Anyway this is still an important street to be on when I talk about Clement Clarke Moore because he really shaped the neighborhood of Chelsea. I’ll talk about that shortly, but let’s get to the Christmas history first. 

The year was 1822, Moore was living at his family’s estate. 

He ended up writing the poem, which was first called “A Visit From Saint Nicholas” as a Christmas gift for his daughters. 

So how did he come up with the poem? It was Christmas Eve in 1822. Moore was on a sleigh ride to Greenwich Village picking up the Christmas turkey. That is when he ended up writing the poem about St. Nick’s visit and he read it to his children that night. Before reading it to his children, he had guests over for Christmas Eve and ended up reading it to them too. 

Moore never really thought about it going behind the walls of his townhouse, so how did it get out? There are a few stories on how it happened, but one that is a guest of the party who lived upstate in Troy really liked the poem and asked to copy it down. A year later, it is believed a friend of that guest submitted that poem to the Troy Sentinel, who then published it on December 23, 1823 with an anonymous author. 

He actually did take credit for writing it at first. Why is that?

The 43-year-old was a biblical scholar of Greek and Hebrew literature at the General Theological Seminary. Moore was known to be someone not to partake in the merriment around Christmas and would be considered a serious Christian man that took care of his family’s farm. He also felt his reputation in literature would be tainted if he was connected to that poem. 

From that small paper upstate, the poem ended up getting re-published under an anonymous byline in papers throughout the country. 

It was not until 1844, that Moore officially took credit for his work. However, because there was such a delay in claiming who wrote it, there were some people that came out trying to take credit for it, including Major Henry Livingston Jr. from Poughkeepsie. Despite their claims, there was not sufficient evidence to back up that he was the writer and Moore rightfully got his recognition. 

Moore did something pretty special with this poem. Any guesses? It really gave the description of how Santa Claus has been depicted for generations. What inspired that depiction of Santa? Moore said he got the idea of a plump man who worked on his farm. Moore's description then inspired another famous New Yorker to create the modern drawing of Santa Claus and that was Thomas Nast, who was known to be the Father of the American Cartoon.

Yes, I will be reading that section of the poem:

"His eyes—how they twinkled! his dimples, how merry!
His cheeks were like roses, his nose like a cherry!
His droll little mouth was drawn up like a bow,
And the beard on his chin was as white as the snow;
The stump of a pipe he held tight in his teeth,
And the smoke, it encircled his head like a wreath;
He had a broad face and a little round belly
That shook when he laughed, like a bowl full of jelly.
He was chubby and plump, a right jolly old elf,
And I laughed when I saw him, in spite of myself."

On top of adding himself into Christmas history, Clement Clarke Moore also added himself into New York City. 

As I mentioned, the area you are in right now was part of his family’s farm.  

Moore was born in 1799 on this land. At that time it was already his family’s farm, which was created by his grandfather Major Thomas Clarke. Thomas named the farm Chelsea after the veterans’ hospital in London. 

Thomas’ daughter, Charity, ended up marrying Benjamin Moore, who became the bishop of the Epsicola Church in the city. 

Clement then inherited the farm. Just to visualize how big this farm was, it stretched from what is now 19th Street to 24th Street and between 8th and 10th avenues.

At first, Moore pushed back on the city’s plan to expand moving uptown and west too, but eventually divided his massive farm into lots. A large portion was donated to create the General Theological Seminary, which is still there today. He then started to sell the lots to developers, but with one clause…it could not be used for commercial use and had to have a distinct look like the townhouses on 22nd Street, so Moore really shaped the look of what Chelsea is today. 

That wraps up our time in Chelsea and let’s head to our next location…it;s Macy’s Herald Square. To get there, we are basically going to backtrack a little, going back onto 23rd Street and heading one avenue over to 7th Avenue. Once there, make a left and head up to 34th Street. You’ll see Macy’s Herald Square. Make a right, crossing over Seventh Avenue heading towards Sixth Avenue. The famous holiday window displays are the windows facing Broadway. 


314 West 22nd Street \|||// We made it to the second spot. 

Welcome to the neighborhood of Chelsea, although some of you might already know this…and you might be wondering why are we here?

Well, one of the most famous Christmas poems can be traced back to this area of the city. I am talking about ‘Twas the Night Before Christmas by Clement Clarke Moore. 

I brought you to this street in particular because there is a townhouse that has an adorable display dedicated to the beloved poem.. You can’t miss it…the townhouse is on the southside of 22nd Street and has a giant peace sign outside. I will say the display usually goes up early-mid December, so depending on when you’re here it might not have changed from autumn to Christmas. 

Anyway this is still an important street to be on when I talk about Clement Clarke Moore because he really shaped the neighborhood of Chelsea. I’ll talk about that shortly, but let’s get to the Christmas history first. 

The year was 1822, Moore was living at his family’s estate. 

He ended up writing the poem, which was first called “A Visit From Saint Nicholas” as a Christmas gift for his daughters. 

So how did he come up with the poem? It was Christmas Eve in 1822. Moore was on a sleigh ride to Greenwich Village picking up the Christmas turkey. That is when he ended up writing the poem about St. Nick’s visit and he read it to his children that night. Before reading it to his children, he had guests over for Christmas Eve and ended up reading it to them too. 

Moore never really thought about it going behind the walls of his townhouse, so how did it get out? There are a few stories on how it happened, but one that is a guest of the party who lived upstate in Troy really liked the poem and asked to copy it down. A year later, it is believed a friend of that guest submitted that poem to the Troy Sentinel, who then published it on December 23, 1823 with an anonymous author. 

He actually did take credit for writing it at first. Why is that?

The 43-year-old was a biblical scholar of Greek and Hebrew literature at the General Theological Seminary. Moore was known to be someone not to partake in the merriment around Christmas and would be considered a serious Christian man that took care of his family’s farm. He also felt his reputation in literature would be tainted if he was connected to that poem. 

From that small paper upstate, the poem ended up getting re-published under an anonymous byline in papers throughout the country. 

It was not until 1844, that Moore officially took credit for his work. However, because there was such a delay in claiming who wrote it, there were some people that came out trying to take credit for it, including Major Henry Livingston Jr. from Poughkeepsie. Despite their claims, there was not sufficient evidence to back up that he was the writer and Moore rightfully got his recognition. 

Moore did something pretty special with this poem. Any guesses? It really gave the description of how Santa Claus has been depicted for generations. What inspired that depiction of Santa? Moore said he got the idea of a plump man who worked on his farm. Moore's description then inspired another famous New Yorker to create the modern drawing of Santa Claus and that was Thomas Nast, who was known to be the Father of the American Cartoon.

Yes, I will be reading that section of the poem:

"His eyes—how they twinkled! his dimples, how merry!
His cheeks were like roses, his nose like a cherry!
His droll little mouth was drawn up like a bow,
And the beard on his chin was as white as the snow;
The stump of a pipe he held tight in his teeth,
And the smoke, it encircled his head like a wreath;
He had a broad face and a little round belly
That shook when he laughed, like a bowl full of jelly.
He was chubby and plump, a right jolly old elf,
And I laughed when I saw him, in spite of myself."

On top of adding himself into Christmas history, Clement Clarke Moore also added himself into New York City. 

As I mentioned, the area you are in right now was part of his family’s farm.  

Moore was born in 1799 on this land. At that time it was already his family’s farm, which was created by his grandfather Major Thomas Clarke. Thomas named the farm Chelsea after the veterans’ hospital in London. 

Thomas’ daughter, Charity, ended up marrying Benjamin Moore, who became the bishop of the Epsicola Church in the city. 

Clement then inherited the farm. Just to visualize how big this farm was, it stretched from what is now 19th Street to 24th Street and between 8th and 10th avenues.

At first, Moore pushed back on the city’s plan to expand moving uptown and west too, but eventually divided his massive farm into lots. A large portion was donated to create the General Theological Seminary, which is still there today. He then started to sell the lots to developers, but with one clause…it could not be used for commercial use and had to have a distinct look like the townhouses on 22nd Street, so Moore really shaped the look of what Chelsea is today. 

That wraps up our time in Chelsea and let’s head to our next location…it;s Macy’s Herald Square. To get there, we are basically going to backtrack a little, going back onto 23rd Street and heading one avenue over to 7th Avenue. Once there, make a left and head up to 34th Street. You’ll see Macy’s Herald Square. Make a right, crossing over Seventh Avenue heading towards Sixth Avenue. The famous holiday window displays are the windows facing Broadway. 


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Chelsea - Clement Clarke Moore and 'Twas the Night Before Christmas

2 - Clement Clarke Moore .mp3

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There is no denying that Macy’s has etched itself into holiday history and not only for Christmas. 

There’s the annual flower show in the spring, 4th of July Fireworks Spectacular in the summer, Thanksgiving Day Parade in the fall and of course the holiday windows and Santaland during Christmastime. 

I can't forget to mention the movie "Miracle on 34th Street" that made us all believe there is a Santa Claus...you just has to tug on his bread to find out.

Let’s start looking at this year’s window display.

While you’re looking at it, you might be wondering when did this tradition of creating festive windows all start?

Well, Macy’s was America's first department store to decorate its windows for Christmas. 

It all started in 1874, not at this location, but when it was located on 14th Street.

Since then, Macy’s sparked a tradition inspiring other stores in the city, including the now defunct Lord & Taylor, B. Altman and Gimbels. Of course Saks and Bergdorf Goodman, which will see both later, and Bloomingdales on the Upper East Side are still dazzling New Yorkers every year.

This year’s Tiptoe the reindeer is back along with her friends, Polar Bear and Penguin. While last year, the Tiptoe celebrated the themes of “togetherness” and “festive nostalgia,” this year she is following the theme of “Give Love.” You can see the group of wild critters doing these they love to do, including playing musical instruments.

Every window has some sort of interactive part to it, like a sing-a-long karaoke display and photo ops to be seen in the windows. 

Who is Tiptoe? Well, she is one of Macy’s holiday mascots that was unveiled in 2021. Her story is a cute one too. 

She is a blue reindeer and really wants to fly Santa’s sleigh, but here’s the thing: she is too shy to fly. That’s where her friends Polar Bear and Penguin come in along with the help of some elves that create a flying machine for TipToe, which are just balloons. She ends up flying the sleigh, but then her balloons pop and then TipToe realizes she doesn’t need the balloon wings and she needs to believe in herself to fly. 

Now speaking of Santa, if you want to see him, you will need reservations and Santaland is on the 8th floor of the store. Reservations are free to make and have to be done online. TImeslots open five days prior and go quickly, so you have to be fast. Now even though you have reservations, you would have to wait in a line as well. but I actually have a little message from Santa himself when I visited him recently:

"I don't want you to pass this around. Beautiful cities: Paris, Copehengan, London I love, but New York City is the greatest city in the world because we all get together, we all work together, everyone of us. And I will tell you I often loose a lot of time on Christmas Eve cause I love going around the Empire State Building. There is no building in the world as wonderful as the Empire State Building. I wish you all a very Merry Christmas, happy holiday and wonderful 2024. Let's have a good one." 

I hope you all made it to the nice list this year.

Before we head to our next location, I want to tell you a story that is about Macy’s but is not connected to Christmas…it’s just something I find rather interesting and you might call it a retail war. 

You see that giant billboard of the red shopping bag that says “World’s Largest Store” on the corner of 34th Street and Broadway? Despite it promoting Macy’s Herald Square, that tiny slice of land where Sunglass Hut is, is not owned by Macy’s.

It’s called Million Dollar Corner, and it has been an issue for Macy’s since this location opened in 1902. The retail war all started between Macy’s, the old department store Siegel-Cooper Company, which was the then world’s largest department store, and Robert “Pop” Smith.

The Siegel Cooper Company wanted to move into Macy’s old location on 14th Street hoping to gain customers that didn’t realize Macy’s moved uptown. 

Siegel’s lease was not approved. 

This is where the little slice of land on 34th Street and Broadway comes into play. 

Smith owned a clothing firm too and was concerned Macy’s move would take away shoppers from the downtown area known as Ladies’ Mile. So, acting behind Siegel, Smith offered the owner of that small corner building $375,000 which was more than what Macy’s offered. 

Smith got the building making it a holdout against Macy’s. Seigel hoped to use it as a pawn to get the lease on Macy’s old building, but Macy’s didn’t budge. 

Smith ended up selling the building in 1911 for $1M but not to Macy’s.

Since the 1960s, Macy’s has made the best of the situation by buying that giant billboard creating a 2,200 square foot shopping bag.

Alright, let’s head to the next location and you can actually stay put and just play the next location for more information.

923 6th Avenue \|||// There is no denying that Macy’s has etched itself into holiday history and not only for Christmas. 

There’s the annual flower show in the spring, 4th of July Fireworks Spectacular in the summer, Thanksgiving Day Parade in the fall and of course the holiday windows and Santaland during Christmastime. 

I can't forget to mention the movie "Miracle on 34th Street" that made us all believe there is a Santa Claus...you just has to tug on his bread to find out.

Let’s start looking at this year’s window display.

While you’re looking at it, you might be wondering when did this tradition of creating festive windows all start?

Well, Macy’s was America's first department store to decorate its windows for Christmas. 

It all started in 1874, not at this location, but when it was located on 14th Street.

Since then, Macy’s sparked a tradition inspiring other stores in the city, including the now defunct Lord & Taylor, B. Altman and Gimbels. Of course Saks and Bergdorf Goodman, which will see both later, and Bloomingdales on the Upper East Side are still dazzling New Yorkers every year.

This year’s Tiptoe the reindeer is back along with her friends, Polar Bear and Penguin. While last year, the Tiptoe celebrated the themes of “togetherness” and “festive nostalgia,” this year she is following the theme of “Give Love.” You can see the group of wild critters doing these they love to do, including playing musical instruments.

Every window has some sort of interactive part to it, like a sing-a-long karaoke display and photo ops to be seen in the windows. 

Who is Tiptoe? Well, she is one of Macy’s holiday mascots that was unveiled in 2021. Her story is a cute one too. 

She is a blue reindeer and really wants to fly Santa’s sleigh, but here’s the thing: she is too shy to fly. That’s where her friends Polar Bear and Penguin come in along with the help of some elves that create a flying machine for TipToe, which are just balloons. She ends up flying the sleigh, but then her balloons pop and then TipToe realizes she doesn’t need the balloon wings and she needs to believe in herself to fly. 

Now speaking of Santa, if you want to see him, you will need reservations and Santaland is on the 8th floor of the store. Reservations are free to make and have to be done online. TImeslots open five days prior and go quickly, so you have to be fast. Now even though you have reservations, you would have to wait in a line as well. but I actually have a little message from Santa himself when I visited him recently:

"I don't want you to pass this around. Beautiful cities: Paris, Copehengan, London I love, but New York City is the greatest city in the world because we all get together, we all work together, everyone of us. And I will tell you I often loose a lot of time on Christmas Eve cause I love going around the Empire State Building. There is no building in the world as wonderful as the Empire State Building. I wish you all a very Merry Christmas, happy holiday and wonderful 2024. Let's have a good one." 

I hope you all made it to the nice list this year.

Before we head to our next location, I want to tell you a story that is about Macy’s but is not connected to Christmas…it’s just something I find rather interesting and you might call it a retail war. 

You see that giant billboard of the red shopping bag that says “World’s Largest Store” on the corner of 34th Street and Broadway? Despite it promoting Macy’s Herald Square, that tiny slice of land where Sunglass Hut is, is not owned by Macy’s.

It’s called Million Dollar Corner, and it has been an issue for Macy’s since this location opened in 1902. The retail war all started between Macy’s, the old department store Siegel-Cooper Company, which was the then world’s largest department store, and Robert “Pop” Smith.

The Siegel Cooper Company wanted to move into Macy’s old location on 14th Street hoping to gain customers that didn’t realize Macy’s moved uptown. 

Siegel’s lease was not approved. 

This is where the little slice of land on 34th Street and Broadway comes into play. 

Smith owned a clothing firm too and was concerned Macy’s move would take away shoppers from the downtown area known as Ladies’ Mile. So, acting behind Siegel, Smith offered the owner of that small corner building $375,000 which was more than what Macy’s offered. 

Smith got the building making it a holdout against Macy’s. Seigel hoped to use it as a pawn to get the lease on Macy’s old building, but Macy’s didn’t budge. 

Smith ended up selling the building in 1911 for $1M but not to Macy’s.

Since the 1960s, Macy’s has made the best of the situation by buying that giant billboard creating a 2,200 square foot shopping bag.

Alright, let’s head to the next location and you can actually stay put and just play the next location for more information.

IMG_2745 (1).jpg

Macy's Herald Square - Holiday Windows

3 - Macys.mp3

Just look up and turn your head east…you’ll see one of the most iconic buildings in not only the city, but possibly the world. It is the Empire State Building. 

This building has been featured in a countless number of movies and tv shows, but one of the most famous Christmas movies that it played a big role in was the 2003 film, Elf. 

Lucky for you, you do not have to pass through the seven levels of the candy cane forest, the sea of swirly-twirly gumdrops and walk through the Lincoln Tunnel to get here. 

If you are not familiar with the film, it's about Buddy the Elf who lives in the North Pole, but really isn’t an elf. He knows he doesn’t fit in and that is when Santa tells him his father lives in New York and works in the Empire State Building. He ends up meeting his dad, Walter Hobbs, but it doesn’t go exactly as he hoped, but in the end Christmas cheer and love prevails. 

If you saw the movie, how was that description? 

Anyway, some of the movie's famous scenes took place here like, “Buddy the Elf wasn’t your favorite color?” or when he goes into the elevator and presses all the buttons and says “it looks like a Christmas tree.”

At this point you can walk you on the northern side of 34th Street towards Fifth Avenue and stop at the corner. 

As you walk, I’ll tell you a little more about the filming of the movie and the brief history of the Empire State Building. 

So, the movie was filmed mostly on a soundstage in Vancouver, but those shots of Will Ferrel walking around New York City in an Elf costume are real. 

The filmmaker, Jon Favreau, wanted to capture New York at Christmas time and sent Ferrel in costume to the city with a crew of about 3 people.

Of course, one of the most iconic scenes is when Buddy ends up eating at the gym for the subway railings. Ferrell says he actually ate that gum and it wasn’t a Hollywood prop. He claims the movie did not have a big budget, so he just did it. 

The last day of filming in New York, the 3 person crew just hopped in a van and filmed Ferrel doing random things in the city and capturing people’s genuine reaction. 

That includes crossing the street and randomly seeing a man with a white beard dressed in a red track suit and going up to him and screaming Santa or when he gets his shoes shined or even running around in the doors. For the most part, the filmmaker says these people didn’t realize they were going to be part of the film.

Also, a little aside…in the film Buddy ends up working at Gimbels. The producers originally wanted to feature Macy’s but the department store said no. If you are familiar with your shopping history, Gimbels was a very big competitor towards Macy’s, but eventually went defunct. We will actually talk about the Gimbel family at another stop on this tour. 

So, I'll just do a quick history of the Empire State Building. I know if you’re from New York, you probably stay away from this building because it could be too touristy, but as a New Yorker I really enjoy visiting here. You’ll definitely learn a lot when visting the part section and the views from the 102nd floor are stunning. 

This building has been called one of the seven wonders of the modern world. It was completed in 1931 and held the title of the World Tallest Building until the early 1970s when the Twin Towers were completed. 

Construction for the Empire State Building took only 14 months and workers were completing 4 and half floors every week. 

Let’s head to our next location, it is the Morgan Library. To get there we are going to continue walking east, crossing over Fifth Avenue to Madison Avenue, which is the next avenue over. Once you get to that corner make a left and head uptown to 38th Street. That is where you will see the Morgan Library on the east side of Madison Avenue. 

1 West 34th Street \|||// Just look up and turn your head east…you’ll see one of the most iconic buildings in not only the city, but possibly the world. It is the Empire State Building. 

This building has been featured in a countless number of movies and tv shows, but one of the most famous Christmas movies that it played a big role in was the 2003 film, Elf. 

Lucky for you, you do not have to pass through the seven levels of the candy cane forest, the sea of swirly-twirly gumdrops and walk through the Lincoln Tunnel to get here. 

If you are not familiar with the film, it's about Buddy the Elf who lives in the North Pole, but really isn’t an elf. He knows he doesn’t fit in and that is when Santa tells him his father lives in New York and works in the Empire State Building. He ends up meeting his dad, Walter Hobbs, but it doesn’t go exactly as he hoped, but in the end Christmas cheer and love prevails. 

If you saw the movie, how was that description? 

Anyway, some of the movie's famous scenes took place here like, “Buddy the Elf wasn’t your favorite color?” or when he goes into the elevator and presses all the buttons and says “it looks like a Christmas tree.”

At this point you can walk you on the northern side of 34th Street towards Fifth Avenue and stop at the corner. 

As you walk, I’ll tell you a little more about the filming of the movie and the brief history of the Empire State Building. 

So, the movie was filmed mostly on a soundstage in Vancouver, but those shots of Will Ferrel walking around New York City in an Elf costume are real. 

The filmmaker, Jon Favreau, wanted to capture New York at Christmas time and sent Ferrel in costume to the city with a crew of about 3 people.

Of course, one of the most iconic scenes is when Buddy ends up eating at the gym for the subway railings. Ferrell says he actually ate that gum and it wasn’t a Hollywood prop. He claims the movie did not have a big budget, so he just did it. 

The last day of filming in New York, the 3 person crew just hopped in a van and filmed Ferrel doing random things in the city and capturing people’s genuine reaction. 

That includes crossing the street and randomly seeing a man with a white beard dressed in a red track suit and going up to him and screaming Santa or when he gets his shoes shined or even running around in the doors. For the most part, the filmmaker says these people didn’t realize they were going to be part of the film.

Also, a little aside…in the film Buddy ends up working at Gimbels. The producers originally wanted to feature Macy’s but the department store said no. If you are familiar with your shopping history, Gimbels was a very big competitor towards Macy’s, but eventually went defunct. We will actually talk about the Gimbel family at another stop on this tour. 

So, I'll just do a quick history of the Empire State Building. I know if you’re from New York, you probably stay away from this building because it could be too touristy, but as a New Yorker I really enjoy visiting here. You’ll definitely learn a lot when visting the part section and the views from the 102nd floor are stunning. 

This building has been called one of the seven wonders of the modern world. It was completed in 1931 and held the title of the World Tallest Building until the early 1970s when the Twin Towers were completed. 

Construction for the Empire State Building took only 14 months and workers were completing 4 and half floors every week. 

Let’s head to our next location, it is the Morgan Library. To get there we are going to continue walking east, crossing over Fifth Avenue to Madison Avenue, which is the next avenue over. Once you get to that corner make a left and head uptown to 38th Street. That is where you will see the Morgan Library on the east side of Madison Avenue. 

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Empire State Building - Elf Celebrates 20 Years

4 - Empire State Building.mp3

This is one of the marvels of the Gilded Age that still stands in New York. There are two things you can do at this location.

One, you can go inside but there is a fee to enter and it would make this tour a little longer than expected. The other option is you can continue the walking tour right now and I’ll tell you what Christmas history you can find inside and you can also come back here another day. I do recommend spending some time here because the library is truly breathtaking. 

I am going to continue on the basis that you are going to keep doing the walking tour right now and come back to Morgan on another day. If you are going in, obviously listen to this location and then pause the walk, when you’re done here you can resume the tour. 

With that being said, when you are looking at the main entrance to The Morgan Library, which is on Madison Avenue between 36th and 37th Streets, it looks very modern. To the left closer to 37th Street, you’ll see a townhouse that the museum is connected to and that was the home of J.P Morgan Jr. That is not the building I want to focus on. The library itself is actually in the building to the right on the corner of 36th Street between Madison and Park Avenue. 

I would suggest walking there and you will come to see the gate and the former main entrance to the library flanked by lionesses. This is how JP Morgan welcomed guests to his library. 

Alright, so let me tell you how the Morgan Library is connected to some Christmas history. The original manuscript of Charles Dickens’ iconic holiday classic “A Christmas Carol” is one display inside. 

Dickens first wrote this ghostly tale in just 6 weeks starting in October 1843 and finished on time for it to be published for Christmas. He wanted to get it done quickly because he was facing a lot of financial trouble.

We’ve come to know it as the story of Ebenezer Scrooge, who was a tight-fisted hand at the grindstone, but transformed into a charitable and better man after being visited by the ghosts of Christmas past, present and yet to come.

When you look at his manuscript, you can notice that there is an urgency to it and can see how his thought process worked with words crossed out. The manuscript is a 66 page draft and is the only manuscript to exist. He finished in time for it to be published on December 19th.

After it was printed, Dickens got it bound in crimson morocco color with a durable goatskin leather. It wanted to give it to Mitton, who was a close friend and creditor. It is believed he gifted it to him as a thank you because Mitton gave him a loan of 270 pounds those past six months.
How was Dickens’ story first received? The general consensus was very positive. One critic said: "If Christmas, with its ancient and hospitable customs, its social and charitable observances, were ever in danger of decay, this is the book that would give them a new lease.”


More than 180 years later, this story is still being told. Dozens of movies have told this tale and inspired Broadway shows.
I do want to point out one thing that the movies and adaptations do not get correctly because the way Dickens writes about the visits of the ghosts makes the story a little more special. The ghosts all come on separate nights. The ghost of Christmas past on Christmas Eve, the Ghost of Christmas Present on Christmas night and the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come on December 26th, so when he wakes up it should be December 27, which makes the scene where he opens the window asking what day it is makes more sense. 

JP Morgan acquired the book in the 1890s and the Morgan Library has displayed it every holiday season – advancing it one page every year.

This year the book is open to the scene where Bob Cracthit asks Scrooge for Christmas Day off and Scrooge famously says: "You'll want all day tomorrow, I suppose?”

Before we move to the next location, I just want to talk about the library itself because it is so regal. This was all designed by renowned architecture firm McKim, Meade and White. 

This was designed by Charles McKim. He used Tennessee pink marble to really turn to his love for the Renaissance with his designs. He looked to 2 Italian villas for inspiration…one was Villa Giulia and the Villa Medici.

It cost JP Morgan  $1.5M to build or nearly $50M today and was completed in 1906.

JP Morgan was said to be “probably the greatest collector of things splendid and beautiful and rare.” As you walk around the garden, there are a number of things to discover. 

There is this Roman sarcophagus. It was purchased by Pierpont Morgan and it dates back to the 3rd Century. There are these 15th century Venetian well-heads. 

You can actually see the coat of arms sculpted on it and it’s actually from the Morosini family, which was a celebrated Venetian family. At the end of one of the paths is this gravestone from Ancient Rome…dating back as early as 100 A.D.

The paths all lead to this grand entrance flanked by two lionesses, which Morgan paid $10,000 or more than $300K today to be sculpted. Those doors leading into the building were actually inspired by Ghberini’s Gates of Paradise, which are the doors to the Florence Baptistery. 

It really is a marvel to look at and take in. Let’s move to our next spot, the New York Public Library. To get there let’s head back to Fifth Avenue and make a right and walk up to 41st Street. The New York Public Library is on the west side of the street.


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The Morgan Library & Museum

The Morgan Library 

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We are sort of the halfway point in the tour and I thought this would be a good spot for a bathroom break. The New York Public Library is free to get in. 

Bathrooms are located on the ground and second floors, but ask one of the security guards or information desk specialists and they will direct you to the closest bathroom. 

While you’re inside, take a picture of the Christmas tree that sits in the archway of Astor Hall and in the McGraw Rotunda…you can’t miss it. 

This is the main branch of the New York Public Library and is called the Stephen A. Schwarzman Building. 

Before this was here, this is where the old Croton Reservoir was and held more than 20 million gallons of water in here for New Yorkers. That water came all the way from upstate and it’s actually the same location where we get our water today. 

When this building was completed in 1911, this was the largest marble building ever built in the United States. It contains 530,000 cubic feet or nearly 4 acres of white Vermont marble. I would also suggest seeing the main reading room on the third floor. 

After that little bathroom break, let’s head back outside the way we came in and walk towards Fifth Avenue making a left going uptown. Before we leave the steps off the New York Public Library, I just want to talk about the two lions that are by the entrance. 

Do you know what their names are? They are known as Patience and Fortitude and let me tell you about them. They stretch more than 11 feet long and they were originally called Leo Astor and Leo Lenox.

That was in honor of the library’s co-founders…John Jacob Astor and James Lenox. They were also called Lady Astor and Lord Lenox. 

Now, at first part of the public didn’t like the idea of the lions. Some thought statues of bison should be there since those are native to North America. Others thought beavers should be there because that would have honored the Astor’s family fortune. 

But, since these pink Tennessee marble lions have been placed on these pedestals they have become city landmarks. 

When did their names change to patience and fortitude? Well, we can thank former Mayor LaGaurdia for that. 

In the 1930s he renamed Patience and Fortitude because those are the qualities he felt New Yorkers would need to survive the Great Depression. 

And, since then…those names haven’t changed. 

Let’s walk up Fifth Avenue to Rockefeller Center to see the big tree, the entrance is between 49th and 50th streets. 


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New York Public Library Main Branch

Welcome to Rockefeller Center! The home of one of the most famous Christmas trees in the country.

According to statistics from Rockefeller Center and Habitat for Humanity, which is where the tree goes after it’s taken down, on average 500,000 people come to see the tree every day during the holiday season. That is an impressive number. 

We will get closer to the tree, but let’s talk about where we are standing now, it is the Promenade also now as the Channel Gardens.

Why is it called that?

Well, it has to do with some geography. 

To the right of where you are standing is the British Empire Building, you can notice that because on the front above the entrance there is the British Coat of Arms. It also says “British Empire Building” on the corner of the building facing Fifth Avenue. 

Right across from it, on your left is the Maison Francaise or French House. On its front facade you’ll see a massive bronze display that represents the relationship between France and New York.

Above that is this statue that is meant to symbolize French freedom and the words under mean Liberty, Equality and Fraternity.

This is where the geography part comes into place.

What is between France and England? The English Channel.
 
The Channel Gardens are named after the waters that separate the two countries, since this space separates the two buildings.

As you walk down the Channel Gardens you’ll see there are the granite pools typically filled with water from the Greek gods, including Triton, but during the holiday season turned off.

Of course, there’s also the holiday angles...stop by one of them as I tell you about how they came to be.

When you think of Christmas at Rockefeller Center, there are three things that come to mind, the tree, the rink and these angels.

They’ve been on display annually since 1955 and they were created by sculptor Valerie Calrebout.  

She was hired by Robert Carson, who was part of the architecture team of Rockefeller Center. She did create other pieces, including a snowman, reindeer and trees, but the angels remained. 

Each angle measures 8-feet tall and took 75 pounds of wire to make each one. All 12 angels are holding a 6-foot-long trumpet that is symbolically heralds in the holiday season. 

In total, 76 miles of materials were to make these, including 18 miles of aluminum wire and brass and thousands of miniature lights to illuminate them.

This is actually one of the only art displays that goes up and down every year. When they are not flanking Channel Gardens, they are in a climate controlled warehouse and it takes crews from Rockefeller Center 10 hours to install and remove the angels every year…they weigh about 50 pounds. 

We can walk closer to the tree and get a glimpse of another iconic part of Rockefeller Center…the ice skating rink.

It is celebrating its 87th year anniversary and why is there even an ice skating rink here?

Well, it all goes back to 1936…three years after the first building of this complex opened. 

At the time there were a lot of high end shops in the Sunken Plaza and while many people came to see the Christmas tree, they rarely made their way down to the Plaza. 

So, John D. Rockefeller Jr. had to find a way to entice people to get down here. 

It is said that there was a skates salesman who would skate on the frozen waters by the fountain as a sales pitch. 

That inspired Rockefeller to build a real rink.

At first it was just going to be temporary, but was so popular that it was made a permanent annual fixture.

Opening day was Christmas in 1936. 

How much was it to skate that first year? For admission and skate rentals it was $1.50 or adjusted to inflation around $33 today. 

If you want to skate today the prices vary depending on the day of the week and time, but starts at $33 days and goes up to $75.

Now we can turn our attention to the reason why everyone comes here and it is that massive tree.

This year, the tree comes from Vestal, New York about 150 miles northwest of the city. It is an 80-year-old Norwary Spruce that measure 80 feet tall.

So when did the tradition of the Christmas tree being placed here start? 

It goes back to December 1931, it was the Great Depression, and construction workers at Rockefeller Center gathered their money together and bought a 20-foot balsam fir tree. 

They decorated it with homemade garland made from their families and one of the most famous pictures from that time was the men lining up by the tree to receive their paychecks. 

Two years later in 1933, Rockefeller Center decided to continue the tradition and held their very first tree lighting. 

Every year, the tree dazzles with lights except during World War II. From 1942 until the end of the war, the tree went unlit because of blackout regulation. Instead of lights, there were unlit globes and a painted wooden star. 

The tree varies in height every year, but the largest one was in 1999. It was 100 feet tall coming from Connecticut. 

Since 2018, that massive tree topper measures 9 foot and 4 inches made of Swarovski crystals. There are 3 million of them on 70 triangular spikes. It was designed by Daniel Libeskind, who also designed One World Trade downtown.

Alright once you snap your photos for the famous tree, let’s head back the way we came and go to Fifth Avenue. 

We will be passing by Saks Fifth Avenue to see the annual window display and learn about one famous Christmas song that started here. 

When you get to Fifth Avenue from the Channel Garden, make a right and at the light cross Fifth Avenue so you are on the northeast corner of 49th Street and Fifth Avenue in front of Saks Fifth Avenue.


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Christmas at Rockefeller Center

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Saks Fifth Avenue

8 - Saks Fifth Avenue.mp3

The Cartier Building is decked out with some holiday cheer and this building is actually one of last remaining Gilded Age mansions on this section of Fifth Avenue. 

Let’s go back in time…the Vanderbilts and other wealthy families during the Gilded Age lived where we are standing right now, including Morton F. Plant whose home was once the Cartier Building. 

The rich moved from this part of Fifth Avenue, mostly up Fifth Avenue more and the Upper East Side, once this stretch of the avenue turned more commercial than residential. 

That brings us to Cartier….as I said it was originally built for Morton F. Plant in 1905, who was the son of  a steamship tycoon down south. 

Now where does Cartier come in?

Well, it is said that Morton’s wife fell in love with a string of pearls from the French jeweler. At the time Morton wanted to move out of the area because as I mentioned it was changing, so he struck a deal with Pierre Cariter. 

He sold the mansion to Pierre for $100 plus the string of pearls, which was valued at $1M or adjusted to inflation now more than $20M today. However, the value of that necklace dropped dramatically once cultured pearls were discovered, so needless to say it was a good deal for Cariter. 

The building that you see today is pretty much what it looked like when it was first built.

Let’s continue to walk up Fifth Avenue towards 59th Street. As we walk up, I just want to give you a quick rundown of what you will see and smell. Yes, you heard that right…smell. 

That’s because Nest is filling part of Fifth Avenue with some holiday scents. The luxe fragrance company teamed up with the Fifth Avenue Association this season.

From 46th to 61st street, they placed 50 tree displays and that is where they pipe in the scents of their holiday candles. 

Continuing our walk, you’ll come to Bergdorf Goodman on the west side of Fifth Avenue between 57th and 58th Street. 

There are two things you can do at this point, like what we did at the Morgan Library. If you want you can pause the tour and when you get to Bergdorf’s you can hit play again to hear what I have to say about the store…or you can just listen now and learn about what you’ll see coming  up shortly. 

So what do Bergdorf’s windows look like this year? This year’s theme is “Isn’t It Brilliant.”

All the windows have shiny and shimmering objects and fashion that all come together to create these beautifully intricate displays. 

All of the seven windows have a special theme and story to tell. For example, you’ll see “First Light.” That window has a collection of animals covered in a mirror mosaic with giant roosters beckoning sunrise. 

Then, there is “The Best and Brightest,” which celebrates knowledge and learning by incorporating vintage signs, flashing light and a neon light bulb illuminating the big idea. 

After looking at the windows, you’ll continue to walk up Fifth Avenue and you will come across the Pulitzer Fountain and of course the famous Plaza Hotel, which was the site of one of the most famous NYC Christmas movies…Home Alone 2: Lost in the City.

You can go into the lobby to check out the Christmas tree real quick…there are also bathrooms here too if you need a little bathroom break. 

Once you walk in you’ll see the Palm Court. Make a right and then a quick left, walk down the hallway to the end. You’ll see the Oak Room…do not go in, but make a right. You’ll see an exit and a set of stairs to the right. Go down the stairs and then you see signs from the bathrooms. 

If you don’t need to, well keep that information for the next time you’re in the area and need a bathroom.

After seeing the tree let’s head back outside making a left out of the main entrance and that street is 59th Street. 

You’re going to want to walk on the north side of 59th Street basically along Central Park and head west one avenue to 6th Avenue. When you’re there, play the next location and you’ll learn about a famous Christmas that started there.


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The Gilded Age in NYC: Cartier Mansion

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Former Navarro Hotel

10 - Old Navaro Hotel.mp3

Welcome to one of the most famous concert venues in the world…Radio City Music Hall. Of course, this time of the year, the Rockettes high kick their way onto the stage for the annual Christmas Spectacular.

The Rockettes have become a huge symbol of Christmas in New York, but how did they come to be? Well, they didn’t start at Radio City and their roots aren’t even in New York. 

The Rockettes were a dancing troupe that was formed by Russell Market in St. Louis in 1925 and they were called the Missouri Rockets.

They came to New York that same year to perform in the Broadway show “Rain or Shine.”

That is where theater owner and producer Samuel 'Roxy' Rothafel discovered them. He was the one who built Radio City Music Hall and also the old Roxy Theater which was down the street. 

The Missouri Rockets became an instant hit and Roxy wanted to keep them in New York, so he did and renamed them to the Roxyettes.

They performed at The Roxy for a few years, but then Rothafel moved them over to a new venue he worked on called Radio City Music Hall. 

The night was December 27th 1932 – opening night of the world’s largest indoor theater. 

The music hall could hold almost 6,000 people. And if you attended the opening, well you had the hottest ticket in town. 

Rothafel had the Roxyettes perform a routine to the song “With a Feather in Your Cap.”

A couple of years later, the Roxyettes were officially renamed the Radio City Music Hall Rockettes.

In the beginning, the music hall turned into a movie theater and every week there would be a new featured movie along with an over the top stage show starring the Rockettes. 

Of course, throughout the years that changed, but the Rockettes have remained at the music hall.

The Christmas Spectacular has dazzled audiences for 89 years creating lasting memories for generations. 

There are a number of scenes that have evolved through those nearly 9 decades, but there are two numbers that have stayed in the show since 1933. Any guesses of what those are?

It is the “Parade of the Wooden Soldiers” and the “Living Nativity.” I’ve seen this show a few times and everytime I see the wooden soldiers fall into each one just amazes me and the Living Nativity is beautiful to see and will leave you in awe, it has real camels, sheep and donkey walking across the massive stage.  

Other numbers that are in this year’s show is a reenactment of The Nutcracker with life-sized teddy bears dancing with Clara, a kickline of the 12 Days of Christmas and of course, Santa.

Performances run through January 1st, 2024 and in case you’re wondering, the run time for the show is around 90 minutes.

Let’s head to our next stop, which is the Winter Garden Theater. To get there we are going to walk on 50th Street heading west basically away from Radio City Music Hall to Broadway. 

You'll see the Winter Garden Theater on your right, but cross over Broadway and stand on the northwest corner of 50th Street and Broadway from the best view of the theatre.

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Radio City Music Hall

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Winter Garden Theatre

13 - Winter Garden Theater.mp3

Can you name at least one song or even a singer that came out of the Brill Building?

I know the list is a pretty long one with the likes of Neil Diamond and Carole King. 
But, how about naming a Chrismtas song from here?

I’ll give you a hint…melody. 

Did you guess “Santa Baby,” cause you’d be right.

The song was written by Phil Springer and Joan Javits in 1953.

In case you’re not familiar with what was inside the Brill Building, it was said to be the center of the American music industry in the 1950s and 1960s. 

Inside you were able to find record labels, songwriters, singers, recording studios, music publishers and radio promoters.  

You had the chance to walk in one morning, have your song recorded, meet with music executives and find out how to get it on the record. Theoretically, you could walk out with a demo and a new future, although it was easier said than done.

It was known as assembly line pop.The music that came out of this building became known as the Brill Building Sound and was synonymous with pop music. 

The songs became structured, related themes and orchestras were part of the music. 

The building got its name not from someone in the music industry, but rather a clothing store that was on the street level named Brill. The store owners ended up buying the building, changed its name and rented most of the floors to businesses related to the music industry. 


Let’s get back to Phil Springer and Joan Javits.

Springer’s career now spans more than 7 decades and is credited for writing and composing more than, get this, 540 pieces.

He has written for a number of singers that you’re probably familiar with, including Judy Garland, Elvis Presley, Frank Sinarta and of course Eartha Kitt.  

Joan Javits was a staff writer in The Brill Building. The duo first met in 1950, Javits was entering the music industry and wanted some advice on starting her songwriting career from Springer. 

Ironically, Springer advised her not to get into the business because it was tough.

Fast forward to 1953, Springer was looking for a new writing partner and called her. 

That same year, RCA Victor Records wanted to record a Christmas song with the popular Broadway and movie star Eartha Kitt. 

Javits and Springer took that opportunity, but not without some hesitation…Springer wasn’t sure if he wanted to write a sultry song for the star.

Kitt was becoming a big star…her career started in the 1940s on Broadway and was gaining popularity with her appearance in New Faces of 1952 on Broadway. 

The sultry singer was once called the most exciting women in the world by Orson Welles and you also might be familiar with her being Catwoman in the Batman television series in 1967. 

How did the song get its name? 

Javits and Springer were sitting in an office with some executives inside the Brill Building trying to figure out what songs to write for Kitt.

All of sudden, Javits jumps up and says Santa Baby and every one in the room loved it. 


The two then went to work on the song. Springer wrote the melody in 10 minutes. Javits wrote the lyrics in about 3 weeks. 

Santa Baby became the best selling Christmas song in 1953, but of course there was some controversy. States in the south placed a temporary ban on the song cause they felt the lyrics were too suggestive to be a Christmas song, but regardless it definitely has lasted the test of time.

Alright, let’s down Broadway into Times Square. Once you get to around 47th Street and Broadway you can play the next location and listen while you walk toward 42nd Street and Broadway. Stopping near the H&M.

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The Brill Building

Since we are passing through Times Square, I can’t miss the opportunity to talk about another holiday that has the eyes of the world on Times Square…New Year’s Eve. 

In general, ask any New Yorker about visiting Times Square on a regular day and their reaction will be less than pleasant. Ask them about being here for New Year’s Eve and it is a definite “no, thank you.” I can’t blame them because standing around with hundreds of thousands of people does not sound enticing to me. 

But, we are not here to bash Time Square, but rather look at it differently so we, yes, even the jaded New Yorker, can look at it with fresh eyes. 

To understand why we celebrate the new year here, let’s go back to the year 1904. Instead of where we are standing right now being called Times Square, it used to be known as Longacre Square.

Why was it called Longacre? Well, back in the 1870s it was the center of the city’s horse carriage industry. The city ended up calling it Longacre Square as a nod to Long Acre in London, which is where the horse and carriage trade was big in London. The American Horse Exchange, who was owned by William Henry Vanderbilt, was located where the Winter Garden Theatre is today.

1904 was a big year for New York. The subway officially opened on October 27, which allowed people to get from City Hall to Harlem in 15 minutes. It was also the year that Longacre Square turned into Times Square after The New York Times moved its headquarters to One Times Square. 

The building is now under a massive renovation that will transform the building into a visitor space, including museum and observation decks.

1904 was also the first year the new year was celebrated in the area. Prior to this people would pack the streets surrounding Trinity Church downtown to hear the bells toll and ring in the new year. 

The publisher of The New York Times at the time, Adolph Ochs wanted to throw a big party to celebrate the opening of One Times Square, which at the time was considered to be the second tallest building in the world. So, if you think about it, it was sort of a publicity stunt that turned into a tradition. 

Fireworks went off to ring in the New Year and the celebration was such a hit that the New York Times said they would do it again the following year and Times Square became the hub for New Year’s Eve celebrations. 

The fireworks were used for a few more years, but then the city banned them for safety reasons, so in 1907 Adolph Ochs had to think of a new way to celebrate the new year. Any guesses what they decided to do? Pretty easy guess because we still do it…a ball drop. 

Ochs decided to turn to an old maritime tradition of ball dropping, which signified a passage of time. Basically the time balls would drop at a precise time everyday and it would allow captains of nearby ships to accurately set their chronometers. So the New Year’s Ball is really a time ball that drops only one day a year.

There were only two times that the ball did not drop to ring in the new year: 1942 and 1943. The reason? New York was subjected to a dim out of lights to protect the city from any possible attacks from the Axis during World War II. 

There have been 7 versions of the ball since 1907. The original one was made of iron and wood, five-feet in diameter, weighed 700 lbs and had 100 light bulbs. It came down the pole with a pulley system meaning someone had to pull it down with a rope.


The ball has drastically changed since that first drop…today, it is considered a geodesic sphere that is 12-feet in diameter and weighs more than 11,800 pounds and is covered in 2,688 Waterford Crystal. It can also display more than 16M vibrant colors creating the possibility of billions of patterns. 


Of course, once the ball drops more than 1 ton of confetti it rains down on the people ringing in the new year. Those pieces of confetti also have the wishes of thousands of people across the world written on it. It shouldn’t be a surprise to know that months after the celebration you can still find confetti coming off buildings and in the street despite a massive clean up effort. 


Alright, so now that you know a little more about how one of the world’s most famous New Year’s Eve celebrations start, let’s walk down to 42nd Street and make a left going east to Sixth Avenue. Our next stop is Bryant Park, which is on Sixth Avenue from 40th to 42nd streets.

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Times Square

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Welcome to the last stop…Bryant Park or at this time of the year known as the Winter Village. 

I’ll give you a rundown of what is here, but first tell you some interesting history of the park. 

Now, I don’t mean to put a damper on things, but this land was originally a potter's field starting in 1823. 

It was a Potter’s Field for almost 20 years, but that changed in 1840 when the city needed to construct the Croton Reservoir. 

What is that? 

Well, that is how New Yorkers get their drinking water. It would come down from upstate and end up in Croton Distributing Reservoir, which was a four acre lake surrounded by 50-foot high and 25-foot thick granite walls. 

It was considered one of the greatest accomplishments in America during the 1800s. Iron pipes would carry the water 41 miles from upstate to the receiving reservoirs, which was in Central Park to the site. 

In the 1870s, the land where we are now turned into Reservoir Park.

But, in the 1850s this was also the site of Crystal Palace.

More than 4,000 exhibitors showcased consumer goods, technological advancements and artwork from across the country.

In fact, this is where Elisha Otis unveiled his invention of the elevator safety brake, which really changed the face of construction buildings in the city and country. 

The Crystal Palace infamously burnt down in 1858. 

Reservoir Park was officially renamed Bryant Park in 1884 after William Cullen Bryant.

He is famously known as a poet, the longtime editor of the New York Evening Post and civic reformer. A statue of him is in the back of the park right by the public library. And yes, earlier in the tour on the opposite side of the library. 

Throughout the decades the park evolved into what it is today, which brings us to the Winter Village. 

This is the site of the city’s largest measuring at 17K square feet and only free ice-skating rink. If you don’t already have skates though, you can rent them for a fee. 

This year there are more than 180 new and returning vendors inside the Winter Village and some say this is one of the best Christmas markets in the world, but as much as I love it, I don’t know if it beats out the European one. 

I want to thank you for letting me take you on this journey around the city sharing some Christmas history with you. I hope you are walking away with knowing something new. 

Please stay in touch with me on Instagram @Here_In_NY and on TikTok at @HereInNYC. 

I hope you have a Merry Christmas, Happy New Year, Happy Holidays, whatever you celebrate make it a fun and amazing one.


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JOHN FRIIA | HERE IN NY

Christmas in New York City: Discover Holiday Traditions that Started in NYC

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