Now, get your mind out of the gutter, if it's there, I mean woody plants!
The first non-herbaceous plant to bloom here-abouts is the witch hazel — not our native Hamamelis virginiana (fall blooming) or Hamamelis vernalis (spring, but a little later), but the asian witch hazels, H. mollis and its cross with H. japonica, Hamamelis xintermedia. 'Arnold Promise' is one of the older and better cultivars of this cross.
Here's one I planted in the Briarwood section of Queens. It began blooming a week ago.
Hamamelis xintermedia in bloom in Briarwood Queens.