The countdown to midnight in Times Square is one of the most universally recognized ways to ring in the new year. The large crystal ball, decked out with lights, slowly descending for the last sixty seconds of the year before fireworks and confetti signal the turn of the calendar, is an iconic tradition.
But if you’re in the South, there are other, arguably more creative and just as iconic, ways to ring in a new year. Cities often celebrate by doing their own ‘ball’ drop, which sometimes resemble the one in Times Square, but oftentimes aren’t a ball at all.
If you’re looking for a warmer (probably) and less crowded way to experience the excitement of a ball drop on New Year’s Eve, here are some of the most quirky and charming ones that you’ll find across the South.
Pepperoni Roll Drop: Mannington, West Virginia
For the past seven years, Mannington, West Virginia, has held their annual pepperoni roll drop on December 31. In 1927, Marion County resident Giuseppe “Joseph ” Argirois was the first to commercialize the infamous pepperoni roll, a staple that coal miners would take for lunch. The county is known as the pepperoni roll capital of the world…