After the crystal ball falls on New Year’s Eve in New York City, it will rise again, glowing red, white and blue as it enters and ushers in 2026. months of celebration for the nation upcoming 250th birthday,
The patriotic touch at this year’s Times Square gathering, including a second confetti drop, will offer an early glimpse of what’s to come: hundreds of events and programs, large and SmallPlanned nationwide to commemorate the signing of the Declaration of Independence in 1776.
“I’m telling you right now, it’s going to be much more than what you’re imagining,” he said. America250 Chairwoman Rosie Rios, who oversees the bipartisan commission created by Congress in 2016 to organize the sesquicentennial anniversary. “This will be one of the most inspiring celebrations this country, and perhaps the world, has seen for ages.”
Rios and his group worked with the Times Square Alliance Business District and One Times Square, the building where the ball is dropped, to make changes to this year’s ceremonies. They are also planning a second ball drop event on July 3, the eve of the nation’s birthday, “in the same beautiful style that Times Square knows how to do,” Rios said.
This will be the first time in 120 years that there will be a ball drop in Times Square that does not occur on New Year’s Eve, he said.
The New Year’s Eve Ball was first dropped in Times Square in 1907. Built by a young immigrant metalworker named Jacob Starr, the 700-pound, 5-foot-diameter ball was made of iron and wood and housed 100 25-watt light bulbs. Last year, the ninth and largest version, the Constellation Ball, was unveiled. It is approximately 12 feet in diameter and weighs approximately 12,000 pounds.
The only years in which there was no ball drop were 1942 and 1943, when the city instituted a nightly “dimout” to protect itself from attacks during World War II. Instead the crowd celebrated the New Year with a moment of silence, followed by the ringing of bells from the base of One Times Square.
This year, midnight will also mark the official launch of America Gives, a national service initiative created by America250. Organizers hope to make 2026 the largest year of volunteer hours ever collected in the country.
The following day, America250 will participate in the New Year’s Day Rose Parade in Pasadena, California, with the theme “Moving Forward Together for 250 Years.” It will feature three large bald eagles representing the country’s past, present and future.
“We want to celebrate this New Year from sea to shining sea. What better way to do that than by going from New York to California,” Rios said. “It has to be community-driven, it has to be grassroots. We’re going from Guam to Alaska, Fairbanks to Philadelphia and everything in between.”
President Donald Trump has also announced a “Freedom 250” initiative to coordinate additional events for the 250th anniversary.
Rios said she sees the wide range of celebrations and events planned for the coming months, from large fireworks displays and statewide potluck dinners to student competitions and civic oral histories, as opportunities to unite. politically divided Nation.
“If we can find something for everyone … there will be menus of options that people can pick and choose how they want to participate,” he said. “That’s how we’re going to include 350 million Americans.”
