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Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree Arrives In NYC

NEW YORK (AP/WCBS 880) - A small-town spruce from rural northeastern Pennsylvania has arrived in the big city.

WCBS 880's Sean Adams In Midtown

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The 74-foot Norway Spruce was cut down Wednesday in Mifflinville, Pa. and hoisted into place at Rockefeller Center for its starring role in a big Christmas tradition.

It will be decorated with 30,000 multicolored LED lights. It will take five miles of wire to cover the tree, which has a girth of 46 feet at its lowest limbs.

Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree
Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree - New York, NY - Nov 11, 2011 (credit: Sean Adams / WCBS 880)

A Swarovski crystal star more than nine feet in diameter will top tree.

The tree is came from the Keller family's property in Mifflinville, about three hours outside New York.

The lighting ceremony is scheduled for November 30, and the tree will remain lit until January 7 After that, the tree will be milled into lumber for Habitat for Humanity.

Workers building Rockefeller Center set up the first Christmas Tree at the site in 1931. The first official tree-lighting ceremony happened in 1933.

(TM and Copyright 2011 CBS Radio Inc. and its relevant subsidiaries. CBS RADIO and EYE Logo TM and Copyright 2011 CBS Broadcasting Inc. Used under license. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)

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