How America has celebrated St Patrick’s Day over the years

For the 35 million Americans who claim Irish ancestry, March 17 means only one thing – celebrating St Patrick’s Day.

The first record of St Patrick’s Day being celebrated in north America was in 1600 when an Irish priest living in Florida, which was then a Spanish colony, held a parade in the city of St Augustine.

The first observance of St Patrick’s Day in what would later become the United States, but was then just referred to as the 13 colonies, was organized in Boston, Massachusetts by the Charitable Irish Society of Boston. The city had seen a huge wave of Irish immigration and celebrations included church services and celebratory dinners.

However, celebrations of St Patrick’s Day were still quite sporadic in Boston throughout the 18th century. During that time, events sprung up other eastern cities with large Irish populations such as New York and Philadelphia.

As the Irish diaspora began to spread throughout the country, many other cities across the US began to hold events to mark St Patrick’s Day and Savannah, Georgia became an unlikely hub of Irish-American activity and now boasts one of the largest St Patrick’s Day parades in the country.

The Great Famine of the mid 19th century saw a huge spike in Irish immigration, particularly to cities such as New York and Boston and often St Patrick’s Day celebrations would take on a nationalist and anti-British feel.

However, throughout the 20th century, Irish-Americans have contributed hugely to all aspects of American life and celebrations of St Patrick’s Day are generally good-natured.

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