St. Patrick's Day Traditions, Customs and Food

Forget about the leprechauns, St. Patrick's Day has a far more meaningful beginning than a simple pot of gold at the end of the rainbow, or little green men bringing us good luck. St. Patrick was born in Britain to wealthy parents near the end of the fourth century. At the age of sixteen, Patrick was taken as a prisoner by a group of Irish raiders, who held him in captivity for six years until he escaped. He was a minister to the Christians of Ireland and it is rumored that he died on March 17, around 460 A.D. The Irish took his teachings very seriously and continued to carry on with the legends and myths surrounding St. Patrick's beliefs. The three sided shamrock was originally used as an analogy to explain the Trinity to the Irish.

This festive green holiday was started by millions of uneducated and poor Irish immigrants looking to escape starvation by coming to America. They poured into American ports seeking a better life, but were despised for their religious beliefs and funny accents by the majority of American Protestants. The hopeful immigrants had trouble finding even menial jobs and faced starvation and becoming homeless due to a lack of income.

Remaining true to their beliefs, Irish Americans living in Boston took to the streets, forming a large parade on St. Patrick's Day in 1737 to celebrate their heritage. This was the first year that St. Patrick's Day was publicly celebrated in this country. Unfortunately this type of behavior by foreigners was considered to be outrageous, and newspapers soon portrayed the Irish immigrants in cartoons as violent drunks.

These kind hearted, and hard working Irish immigrants began to realize that their large numbers empowered them with a political alliance that had yet to be examined. They started organizing a voting block, known as the "green machine," that became an important swing vote for political hopefuls. Suddenly, annual St. Patrick's Day parades became a show of strength for Irish Americans.