St. Patrick's Day in the USA

St. Patrick's Day is celebrated not only in Ireland, but all around the world.  Why is it such a big deal in the USA?  Likely because there are ~36 million Americans that claim that their primary ancestry is Irish.  Here are some famous celebrations that take place in the US!

Savannah dyes their fountains green in celebration of St. Patrick's Day!
(Photo from elephantjournal.com)

Boston, Massachusetts - Considered the oldest of them all, the celebration in Boston dates back to 1737, when a group of Irish immigrants gathered to celebrate their homeland.

NYC, New York - Starting shortly after the Boston celebrations, the first observance of St. Patrick's day dates to 1762, with a parade starting in 1848 that is still one of the largest in the country.

Atlanta's Parade is one of the country's oldest!
(Photo from styleblueprint.com)

Savannah, Georgia - St. Patrick's day is taken seriously in this town, with the parade taking place on March 17th itself, instead of the weekend before.  But, in addition to the parade, the city celebrates with a whole week of festivities leading up to the big day. Including dying all the city's fountains green.

Chicago River dyed green for St. Patrick's Day Celebrations!
(Photo from rantlifestyle.com)

Atlanta, Georgia - Dating back to 1858, the parade in this southern city is one of our country's oldest. Full of music and dancing, this parade has grown vastly from the initial few hundred Irishmen that participated!

Chicago, Illinois - This year marks the 60th anniversary of the city's parade and over 40 years that the city dyes the Chicago River green to match the green hues found on the Emerald Isle.

San Francisco, California - Irish people from all around the bay area congregate in the city to celebrate the holiday with a parade, wearing green and drinking a Guinness. Not to be outdone by the older cities on the east coast, San Francisco has hosted a celebration since 1852.

San Francisco's Parade includes their famous cable cars!
(Photo from abc7news.com)

What are your St. Patrick's Day plans? Leave a comment below!