You’d be forgiven for thinking that St. Patrick’s Day has an Irish origin, but as it turns out March 17th is a distinctly American holiday.

The first recorded St. Patrick’s Day celebration is from March 17th, 1737 in Boston, MA. Celebrations remained small until the end of the Civil War, when in the mid and late 1860’s there was a massive increase of Irish immigrants to the US. While they faced racism from other Americans, these new Irish Americans were looking for a respectful way to show their strength in numbers. And so St. Patrick’s Day celebrations began to grow.

Originally focused in Irish only communities, as more Irishmen found their way into local and state levels of government, the St. Patrick’s Day parade began to make its way down the main streets of major cities around the country. By the end of the 19th century, St. Patrick’s Day was being observed on the streets of Boston, Chicago, and New York, as well as in other cities such as New Orleans and San Francisco, solidifying its place in American culture.

One more thing

If you’re going to shorten the name, it should be St. Paddy’s Day, not St. Patty’s Day. Paddy is short for Padric, Patty is short for Patricia. Thanks to Sam for making sure this was included.