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why should new york city’s New Year’s Eve performance is iconic times square Ball drop, have fun?
Across the United States, dozens of communities are ushering in 2026 with an even more bizarre array of falling objects, from fruits and vegetables to sea creatures and orbs of all shapes and sizes.
Many unique traditions have a unique local flavor.
Wisconsinof plymouthfor example, put down a giant wedge of cheese, while Las Cruces, New Mexicochoose chile peppers.
Flagstaff, Arizonafeaturing pine cones, and key westFlorida celebrates with conch shells.
Pennsylvania, in particular, offers a veritable smorgasbord of quirky New Year’s Eve activities, including Bologna Drops lebanonthe Pickle Shop in Dillsburg and the Chip Shop in Lewistown.
The widespread tradition dates back to 1907, when a 318kg, 1.5m diameter ball landed in Times Square for the first time, sparking celebrations that have been copied across the country since the turn of the century.
fruit celebration
Some cultures believe that eating fruit on New Year’s Eve will bring good luck, a sentiment perhaps reflected in the numerous fruit-themed candies.
Miami boasts ‘Big Orange’ drops, while SarasotaFlorida, featuring pineapples.
Cherry trees bring joy to people in Milwaukee, Oregon traverse cityMichigan. Brightly lit grapes are falling in Temecula, California, while Atlanta is innovating this year with a “digital drone aerial peach” to replace the traditional peach drop.
coastal quirks
For beachgoers, the celebrations have an ocean theme. folly beach, south carolinaPanama City Beach, Florida is hosting a nighttime bash where 15,000 beach balls rain down on revelers before a giant beach ball drops from a tower at midnight.
Sweet Tooth and Giant Chick
What could be more satisfying than witnessing the 60-second descent of a 272-kilogram MoonPie in Mobile, Alabama, and then eating a slice of MoonPie cake? For a sweeter sight, a 181kg yellow peeping chick dropped in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania.
seafood glasses
Seaside towns often respect their aquatic heritage. Shrimp surrender event held in Brunswick, Georgia, eastonMaryland hosts its annual crab drop. Oyster drops are the highlight of Bay St. Louis, Mississippi. Perhaps the most impressive catch was on the shores of Lake Erie in Port Clinton, Ohio, where a 272-kilogram walleye named Wylie, originally a paper mache fish 30 years ago and now a ferocious fiberglass fish, took center stage.
Starch and Pickled Plunge
Many of these drops have a unique food theme running through them. There is a 3-meter-tall dumpling in Whiting, Indiana, just outside Chicago. Boise’s Idaho Potato Drop has been running for a decade, while North Carolina’s Mount Olive celebrated its local pickle brand by dropping a nearly 1.8-meter-long shimmering green pickle.
possum story
While these events are intended to foster civic pride and attract visitors, one particular tradition has sparked significant controversy. After years of protests and legal challenges, residents of western North Carolina stopped placing live opossums in glass boxes at midnight in 2019. Yet the opossum drop in Tallapoosa, Georgia—historically known as the Possum Nose—lives on, even though this version features a stuffed opossum named Spencer.