USWNT Player Allie Long's New Key To The City Stolen
July 12, 2019, 9:20 a.m.
Luckily, Mayor de Blasio has another key ready.
Megan Rapinoe, Alex Morgan, and Allie Long during the ticker tape parade
A member of the World Cup-winning U.S. Women's National Team was robbed in Los Angeles—and one of the items taken was her brand new key to New York City.
Midfielder Allie Long tweeted about the incident on Thursday, saying, "After the
ESPYS someone stole my wedding ring, cash and the key to my favorite city after just receiving it from my hotel room. Do you make copies @NYCMayor? I would love a new one."
After the @ESPYS show someone stole my wedding ring, cash and the key to my favorite city after just receiving it from my hotel room. Do you make copies @NYCMayor ? I would love a new one.
— Allie Long (@ALLIE_LONG) July 12, 2019
Long, and her USWNT teammates, were feted in New York City on Wednesday with a ticker tape parade and a ceremony at City Hall, where they received Keys to New York City. After that celebration, they flew to Los Angeles for the ESPYs.
TMZ reports that the wedding ring was worth about $15,000.
Multiple copies of the "Key to the CIty" (Mayor's Office Flickr)
The city has details on the long tradition of giving a Key to the City to individuals.
The first occasion a Key to the City was awarded was on June 27, 1702, when Mayor Philip French executed a “Freedom of the City” for Viscount Edward Cornbury, the Governor of New York and New Jersey at the time.
By the middle 1800s, it became customary to award the “Key to the City” as a direct symbol of the City’s wish that a guest feel free to come and go at will.
The key symbolized free entry during a time when admission into New York City was hampered by many legal restrictions, as well as by walls and locked gates.
Further, the box the key is presented in says, "Facsimile of key made in 1812 for the door of City Hall, New York," while the five inch-long keys showcase "the New York City seal and the Mayor’s name on its shaft" and "bears resemblance the large skeleton key that currently opens the back door of City Hall."
However, these keys, made by lower Manhattan company Ashburns Engravers (and cost $100 per copy), do not open any locks or door.
Mayor Bill de Blasio reassured Long this morning:
So sorry to hear it, Allie. Hang in there. Don’t worry about the key. Like any good New Yorker, we keep a spare for our neighbors! We got you covered. https://t.co/B5xqZPMZnU
— Mayor Bill de Blasio (@NYCMayor) July 12, 2019
However, to whomever stole Long's items... watch out for Alex Morgan:
I AM FURIOUS FOR YOU
— Alex Morgan (@alexmorgan13) July 12, 2019
