St. Patrick’s Day celebrations still going strong in America after more than 400 years

WILMINGTON, NC (WWAY) — St. Patrick’s Day is known for its large celebrations of all things green. But the history of the fun holiday traces back hundreds of years.

Since around the ninth or 10th century, people in Ireland have been observing the Roman Catholic feast day of St. Patrick on March 17th, the anniversary of his death in the fifth century.

The celebrations in America began in the 1600s, with records showing a St. Patrick’s Day parade was held on March 17, 1601 in what is now St. Augustine, Florida.

In 1848, several New York Irish Aid societies decided to unite their parades to form one official New York City St. Patrick’s Day Parade. Today, that parade is the world‘s oldest civilian parade, with more than 150,000 participants.

One of the most famous traditions of dyeing the river green in Chicago began more than 100 years later in 1962.

Although a legal holiday only in Savannah, Georgia and Suffolk County, Massachusetts, St. Patrick’s Day is widely recognized and celebrated throughout the United States.