New York Series: Why is NYC also called the Big Apple?
The big Apple? Some say it comes from the former well-to-do families that sold apples on NYC streets to make ends meet during the Great Depression. Another account says that the term comes from a famous 19th century brothel madam named Eve whose girls were cheekily referred to as her “Big Apples.” It was popularized in the 1920s a sports writer for the NY Morning Telegraph. Its popularity since the 1970s is due to a promotional campaign by the NY Convention and Visitors Bureau.