With St. Patrick's day around the corner, we take a look at how the American's like to celebrate this event, and where the best parties can be found!
St. Patrick's Day is a celebration of the patron saint of Ireland, and American's have embraced this tradition every March 17th, since before the declaration of independence since many U.S citizens are from Irish descent.
St. Patrick's Day celebrations usually consist of Irish themed parties, food, alcohol and wearing a lot of green! It is common to see all green firework displays, elaborate parades and for bars and clubs (especially Irish bars) to hold special events and promotions and for much of the food consumed to have been dyed green! In Chicago, they even dye their river green!
Like many American holidays, much of the celebration centers around a parade. In the U.S there are several notable St.Patrick's Day parades, and here is a run down of some of our favorites!
10. Kansas City, Mo.
9. New Orleans
On St Patrick's day, New Orleans trades beads for potatoes and cabbages that are thrown from passing floats. New Orleans is famous for their Mardis Gras but their St Patrick's Day parade is also another big street party in the area where revelers can enjoy the costumes, flowers, floats, moon pies and festive atmosphere.
8. Hot Springs, Ark.
"Everyone is Irish in Hot Springs!"
Although this is the youngest parade on this list, it is also the strangest! Hot Springs parade is presided over by a celebrity marshal and features bagpipers, floats and... Irish Elvises!
7. Philadelphia, Pa.
6. Dublin, Oh.
There are 10 cities in the U.S with the name Dublin, but the one in Ohio is the one that embraces its Irish legacy with the most fervor. Dublin, Ohio celebrates St Patrick's Day with a mile-long parade, made up of over 100 floats, bands and the 'Grand Leprechaun' - which is an honor bestowed on to a resident who's duties involve judging the parade float decorating contest!
5. San Francisco, Ca.
San Francisco is a city that needs no excuse for a party and is well renowned as being the best place to celebrate on the west coast! Once the parade itself is done, the celebrations just get started in the bars across the city!
4. Savannah, Ga.
Savannah likes to do their St Patrick's Day parade big! You can expect an attendance exceeding 400,000 and a parade that lasts over 3 hours!
3. New York City, Ny
New York City has one of the largest parades with attendances estimated at around 2 million every year. Originally organized by Irish soldiers in the British Army in 1762 - it is the longest running parade in the world.
2. Chicago, Il
Chicago hosts one of the largest St Patrick's Day celebrations in the country - and the most over the top! They even dye the Chicago river green for the occasion!
1. Boston, Mass
Boston is the most historically significant St Patrick's Day parade, dating back to 1737 - the world's first recorded parade for this holiday - even pre-dating Dublin, Ireland by almost 2 centuries! According to the 2009 U.S Census, almost 24% of the population in Massachusetts is of Irish descent, making it the most Irish state in the USA! The parade itself does not disappoint - with floats, bagpipers, marching bands and more than 850,000 attendees!
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