WEST STOCKBRIDGE, Mass. (NEWS10)-- Every year, Rockefeller Center in New York City welcomes one of the country’s greatest trees to stand vigil through the holidays. This year, the tree hails from the Berkshires.
On Monday, Rockefeller Center announced that this year's Christmas Tree would be coming from West Stockbridge, Massachusetts, donated by the Albert family. The Norway Spruce will be cut on Nov. 7 and will arrive at Rockefeller Center on Nov. 9.
Once it arrives at Rockefeller Center, the tree will be decorated with over 50,000 LED Christmas lights, spanning around 5 miles of wire. The star topping the tree will be the same one that has sat atop the annual center tree since 2018 – a 900-pound Swarovski star designed by architect Daniel Libeskind, 9 feet in diameter and featuring 70 crystal spikes.
The tree lighting will be held in Rockefeller Center on Dec. 4. Once the holiday season has come and gone, the tree will be milled into lumber that will support Habitat for Humanity projects.
The Rockefeller Center tree tradition started in 1931, when workers put up the first tree. The first formal lighting ceremony was held in 1933, with over 700 lights illuminating the then-new RCA building. Variations over the decades have included years with multiple trees; decorations in support of soldiers during World War II; and the adoption of LED lights starting in 2007.
