Name origin
Manna-hata
Munsee (Lenape)
"The place where we get bows"
Named for a grove of hickory trees at the island's southern tip that was ideal for bow-making.
City history
New York through time
Explore how the city got its name, standardized its clocks, and created timekeeping traditions recognized around the world.
Chapter one
Name & etymology
Pre-1609
Lenapehoking
Land of the Lenni-Lenape
The Indigenous Lenape homeland covering the Manhattan island region.
1626-1664
New Amsterdam
Named after Amsterdam, capital of the Dutch Republic
The Dutch West India Company established a trading post in 1624 and formally named it New Amsterdam in 1626. Peter Minuit's 1626 purchase of Manhattan for 60 Dutch guilders later became the famous '$24' legend.
1664-present
New York
Named after James, Duke of York
Colonel Richard Nicolls sailed four frigates into the harbor on September 8, 1664. The city surrendered without bloodshed and was formally reincorporated under English law in June 1665.
1673-1674
New Orange
Named after William of Orange
The Dutch briefly recaptured and renamed the city during the Third Anglo-Dutch War. It returned to England under the 1674 Treaty of Westminster.
Chapter two
Timezone history
Current timezone
America/New_York
- Standard
- UTC-5 (EST)
- Daylight
- UTC-4 (EDT)
Pre-1883 Local solar time
New York City set its own time by the position of the sun. A traveler from Boston to the west coast could pass through roughly 20 different local times.
1883 The Day of Two Noons - Eastern Standard Time adoptedNovember 18, 1883
Standard Railway Time took effect at noon on November 18. New Yorkers heard the bells of St. Paul's Chapel ring noon, then ring again four minutes later to signal standardized time. This ended the city's use of local solar time.
1917 NYC leads an early DST push
Mayor John Purroy Mitchel convened a citywide 'Turning the Clock Forward' conference. Civic leaders, unions, manufacturers, law firms, and academics advocated for daylight saving time before federal adoption.
1918 First federal Daylight Saving Time observedMarch 31, 1918
Under the Standard Time Act, New York observed DST for the first time as part of a national World War I energy-conservation effort. Clocks remained forward for seven months.
1919 Federal DST repealed; NYC continues voluntarily
Congress repealed federal daylight saving time after World War I. New York City chose to continue observing it, joining only a small group of American cities.
1942-1945 Year-round 'War Time' DST
President Franklin D. Roosevelt imposed year-round daylight saving time from February 9, 1942, to September 30, 1945, as a World War II energy measure officially called 'War Time'.
1966 Uniform Time Act standardizes DST
The Uniform Time Act ended a chaotic patchwork of local observances. New York has followed the national DST framework since then.
Chapter three
Timekeeping milestones
Manhattan's first time ball Harbor clocks synchronize
The Western Union Telegraph Building installed one of the nation's earliest time balls, a navigational tool dropped daily so ship captains could synchronize chronometers. The practice helped inspire the Times Square ball drop.
The Day of Two Noons Standard time arrives
On November 18, New York City's clocks reset to Eastern Standard Time, creating a literal double noon and ending local solar time.
New York Times Tower fireworks begin A Times Square tradition begins
New York Times owner Adolph Ochs began hosting New Year's Eve fireworks at the newly built One Times Square to establish the newspaper's headquarters as a center of city life.
First Times Square Ball Drop Midnight becomes a spectacle
After the city banned fireworks for safety reasons, Ochs commissioned metalworker Jacob Starr to build a 5-foot, 700-pound ball lit by 100 incandescent bulbs. Six men lowered it by rope as an estimated 200,000 people watched.
The ball becomes an apple An iconic redesign
From 1981 to 1988, the ball was redesigned as a glowing red apple in support of the 'I Love New York' campaign.
Waterford Crystal panels added The crystal era
Waterford Crystal triangular panels ushered in the modern era of the illuminated crystal ball recognized worldwide.
One Times Square observation deck A new view of the tradition
A new public observation experience at the building brings visitors closer to the site of the century-old New Year's Eve tradition.