The season of light takes on special meaning in a city as bright as New York. It all starts with the lighting of the world’s most famous Christmas tree at Rock Center and closes with the ball drop in the fleshpit of Times Square on New Years.

The tree in Madison Square Park may be overlooked, with all the storefronts to be taken in, holiday fares to wade through and ice rinks popping up all over, but it was here that the season of light arguably began 100 years ago. That is when the first public tree lighting ceremony ever took place, not just in New York, but in the country, based on research by the Madison Square Park Conservancy.

“We’ve been waiting for this moment a long time,” said Debra Landau, director of the conservancy. Read More