20 NY Traditions That Mean Christmas is Already Here

The Fifth Avenue Snowflake first lit up the intersection of Fifth Avenue and 57th Street in 1984, created by lighting designer Douglas Leigh.

Suspended fifty feet above the street, its thirty-foot span of crystal prisms became an instant symbol of New York’s winter glow. Over the years, new lights, new tech, and new causes shaped its meaning, turning the snowflake into a beacon for both the holidays and the city’s charitable spirit.