Times Square Never Sleeps

Times Square is 0.1 square miles of concentrated human energy that has defined New York City for over a century. Over 300,000 people pass through it every single day, making it one of the most visited destinations on earth, and the famous ball drop has happened every New Year's Eve since 1907, missing only two years during wartime blackout restrictions.

This guide covers how a horse-carriage intersection became the most electric place on earth, why it nearly disappeared in the 1970s, and the best times to actually experience it.

Times Square is a 0.1-square-mile intersection in Midtown Manhattan where Broadway, Seventh Avenue, and 42nd Street meet. It's named after The New York Times, which moved its headquarters there in 1904. Today more than 300,000 people pass through it daily, drawn by over 90,000 square feet of illuminated billboards.

In this article

• Times Square quick facts ↓
• How Times Square got its name ↓
• The rise, fall, and comeback ↓
• The best times to visit ↓
• FAQ ↓

Times Square Quick Facts

How Did Times Square Get Its Name?

The area was not always glamorous. In the 1880s it was Longacre Square, the center of New York's horse carriage trade, lined with stables, blacksmiths, and carriage manufacturers. That changed in 1904, when Adolph Ochs, publisher of The New York Times, moved his paper's headquarters to a new skyscraper at the intersection of Broadway, Seventh Avenue, and 42nd Street and lobbied the city to rename the area in the paper's honor. The New York Times Building opened on December 31, 1904, and Ochs marked the occasion with a fireworks display that drew 200,000 people, the largest public gathering the city had seen.

Fireworks were banned by the city three years later over safety concerns, so Ochs replaced them with something stranger: a 700-pound iron and wood ball covered in 100 electric bulbs, lowered from a flagpole at midnight on December 31, 1907. It worked. People came back the next year, and the year after that, and the tradition has continued every New Year's Eve since, with the only exceptions being 1942 and 1943 due to wartime blackout restrictions. Read more: timessquarenyc.org ↗

How Did Times Square Rise, Fall, and Come Back?

The golden age of theater

Through the 1910s, 20s, and 30s, Times Square became America's entertainment capital. Dozens of Broadway theaters, vaudeville halls, and movie palaces lined 42nd Street, and by 1930 the stretch had earned the nickname the Great White Way for the density of electric marquees lighting it at night. The first sound film, The Jazz Singer, premiered at the Warners Theatre on Broadway in 1927.

The decline that nearly erased it

By the 1970s, the story had changed completely. New York's financial collapse and rising crime pushed the middle class to the suburbs, and the theaters that had defined Times Square closed or were converted to adult entertainment venues. Taxi Driver, filmed in 1975, used the area as its backdrop precisely because it looked like a place that had given up on itself.

The turnaround

The revival began in the late 1980s and accelerated through the 90s, as the city and state redeveloped the most deteriorated properties along 42nd Street. Disney's move into the restored New Amsterdam Theatre in 1994 signaled the shift, and by 2000 crime had fallen by more than 75 percent from its 1990 peak while tourist visits tripled.

When Should You Actually Experience Times Square?

Early morning, 5 to 7 AM

Almost no one talks about Times Square at dawn. The signs stay fully lit, the streets sit nearly empty, and the light falls on empty pavement in a way that's rarely photographed. It lasts about two hours before the morning rush begins.

Midweek afternoons

Tuesday and Wednesday afternoons between 2 and 4 PM are the lowest-traffic windows, since the major tourist rushes happen on weekends. That's the easiest time to actually look at the space rather than navigate around it.

Rain

Wet pavement reflects the billboards in real time, turning every puddle into a canvas of moving color. Evening rain produces some of the most striking urban photographs Times Square offers.

Frequently Asked Questions

How crowded is Times Square on a typical day?

Over 300,000 people pass through on an average day. Weekend afternoons between 1 and 5 PM are the peak congestion windows, while midweek mornings are significantly quieter.

Is Times Square safe?

Yes. It's one of the most heavily policed areas in New York City, and the crime reduction that began in the 1990s has been sustained for over two decades.

How long has the ball drop been happening?

Since December 31, 1907, missing only 1942 and 1943 due to wartime blackout restrictions, making it one of the longest-running annual public events in American history.

What is the Great White Way?

The nickname for the stretch of Broadway running through the Times Square theater district, referring to the density of electric marquees that illuminated the street in the early twentieth century. The name dates to around 1902 and is still used today.

How large is Times Square?

Roughly 0.1 square miles, with the main pedestrian plazas running from 42nd Street to 47th Street along Broadway and 7th Avenue.

Why does a Times Square metal print make a great gift for a Broadway theater fan?

A Times Square metal print is a thoughtful, ready-to-display gift idea for a Broadway theater fan because it's personal to what they actually love, arrives ready to set up with no framing needed, and comes with a matching 5mm mouse pad for their desk. Each piece ships in 3 to 5 business days and is handcrafted in North Liberty, Iowa, so it still feels personal even as a last-minute gift.

Where can you get city skyline decor like this for a desk?

X2Metal offers city and skyline designs printed on glossy ChromaLuxe metal and sized for a desk, with matching 5mm mouse pads. Browse the USA Skylines collection. Everything is handcrafted in North Liberty, Iowa.

About the author: Business Alchemist | Turning Ideas into Products, Brands & Businesses | Navid Malik. Navid is the founder of X2Metal, a metal print studio in North Liberty, Iowa creating bold, durable metal prints and 5mm mouse pads.

Sources: Times Square Alliance ↗ and Wikipedia ↗. X2Metal is not affiliated with any organization mentioned in this post.

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