When did Rockefeller Center's Christmas tree lighting begin? See photos dating back to 1930s

Wyatte Grantham-Philips, USA TODAY

November 29, 2022 at 8:27 AM·1 min read

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas in New York City.

Rockefeller Center will commemorate its 90th Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremony Wednesday night at 8 p.m. ET. The decades-long holiday tradition dates back to 1931, in the midst of the Great Depression.

According to the Rockefeller Center website, Rockefeller Center workers at the time put their money together to buy a 20-foot tall Balsam Fir, adorned with garlands that were handmade by the workers' families, in hopes of lifting Christmas spirits. Two years later, Rockefeller Center chose to make the tree an annual holiday tradition – holding its first official lighting ceremony in 1933.

Over the years, each towering tree that lights up Midtown Manhattan has been unique. In 2022, the Rockefeller Christmas tree is a 14-ton Norway Spruce that is 82 feet tall and 50-feet wide, according to the Rockefeller Center. It's decorated with more than 50,000 lights on five miles of wire and a stunning Swarovski star, weighing about 900 pounds and coated in 3 million crystals.

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The tree, which comes from Queensbury, New York, is about 85-90 years old – close to the same age of Rockefeller Center's annual lighting tradition.

Here's a look at some Rockefeller trees from years past.

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Construction workers line up for pay beside the first Rockefeller Center Christmas tree in New York in this 1931 file photo. (AP Photo)

The ice skating rink at Rockefeller Center is under construction, Dec. 19, 1936. The rink is about 50 feet by 100 feet and will be ready for use by Christmas day. Admission will be $1. (AP Photo)

The landmark Christmas tree at New York's Rockefeller Plaza stands out Dec. 26, 1947 as a few hardy pedestrians make their way through the snow drifts of one of the heaviest winter storms in years.

The Rockfeller Center Christmas tree and decorations on 1952 at New York.

This is a night view of the famous christmas tree at Rockefeller Center, seen through the Channel Gardens from Fifth Avenue, in December 1961.

This is the scene at Christmastime in Rockefeller Center in New York City, Dec. 17, 1974.

The Christmas tree towers over the ice skating rink at Rockefeller Center in New York City on Christmas Day, Dec. 25, 1979.

One of the three camels from New York's Radio City Music Hall's Christmas show (front) takes time out from his morning constitutional to nibble on the tree as it arrived in Rockefeller Center, Nov. 16, 1984.

Some of the more than 500 tuba players participating in the 24th Annual Tuba Christmas play during a concert on the ice at Rockefeller Center's skating rink below a 74-foot Norway spruce Sunday, Dec. 14, 1997, in New York.

The Christmas Tree at New York's Rockefeller Center shines brightly after first lady Laura Bush and Mayor Rudolph Giuliani threw the switch to kick-off the holiday season, Wednesday, Nov. 28, 2001. (AP Photo/Ron Frehm)

The Rockefeller Center Christmas tree stands lit as people take photos of it and the holiday decorations at Rockefeller Center during the 85th annual Rockefeller Center Christmas tree lighting ceremony, Wednesday, Nov. 29, 2017, in New York.

People take pictures of themselves with the Rockefeller Center Christmas tree in New York on Christmas day, Friday, Dec. 25, 2020. The coronavirus upended Christmas traditions, but determination and imagination kept the day special for many.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: When is Rockefeller Center Christmas tree lighting? When did it start?

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