The St. Patrick's Day Parade has taken place here in New York since 1762.
1762!
That's fourteen years before the signing of the Declaration of Independence! The first gatherings were comprised of a band of homesick Irish ex-patriots and Irish military members serving with the British Army stationed in the colonies in New York. There was a time when the wearing of green as a sign of Irish pride was banned in Ireland. So in that 1762 parade, participants reveled in the freedom to speak Gaelic, wear green, sing Irish songs and play the pipes to Irish tunes that were meaningful to Irish immigrants of the time.
Aside from a two-year break due to covid (damn you once again, covid!), Irish folks and the people who love them have been marching up Fifth Avenue every year since.
So here's the skinny: The parade starts at 11 a.m. on the 17th and finishes about 5 p.m. It starts at 44th Street, will pass by St. Patrick's Cathedral at 50th Street and runs all the way up to 79th Street. You can watch it anywhere on Fifth from 44th to 79th, just be sure to get there early to get a prime viewing spot.
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