St. Patrick’s Day: Then and Now

According to history.com, St. Patrick’s Day is celebrated every year on March 17, which is the day in honor of the Catholic Saint, Patrick, who is the patron saint of Ireland–he was credited with bringing Christianity to Ireland after he was kidnapped.

The United States, Australia, and Canada are among the popular countries for celebrating this holiday, along with Ireland and Singapore. Each country celebrates in a similar way, including pubs and shamrocks.

The shamrock plant began as a sacred plant in Ireland because it symbolized the coming of spring. Many would use the shamrock to show pride of their country. Leprechauns originated from the Celtic’s beliefs of fairies and tiny men or women who could use their powers as a form of good or evil.

Sonja Bergum, a senior at Arrowhead said, “When I was little I remember everyone would always try to find the leprechaun at recess. There was this one tree by the fence where everyone was always certain it was hiding in. I myself am Irish, however, I know there’s many people that aren’t even Irish that still celebrate St. Patrick’s Day–It really shows how traditions can be carried on and passed on to so many different people.”

According to tech times.com, celebrations continued to grow bigger each year as more Irish moved to the US. The first St. Patrick’s parade took place in America–Americans are also responsible for turning this holiday into a big party and festival. New York has the biggest and most famous St. Patrick’s Day parade in the world. Chicago also joins, dying the river green to celebrate the holiday.

Claire Lauterbach, a senior at Arrowhead said, “St. Patrick’s Day is one of those holidays that I feel like nobody actually knows the true meaning. It seems as though everyone just looks at it as another day to celebrate and have a good time.”

Milwaukee is a big city for celebrating St. Patrick’s Day, according to the Shamrock Club of Wisconsin’s website.

The Shamrock Club is the oldest and largest Irish American membership organizations in the state of Wisconsin. They hold events around Milwaukee in the days before St. Patrick’s Day. The celebrations starts off with the Shamrock Club’s annual birthday party at the Irish Cultural and Heritage Center, which was held on March 3, with a concert by the Shamrock Club Color Guard Pipes and Drums.

Starting March 8, there was daily entertainment at the Shops of Grand Avenue, featuring local Irish bands and dance schools, as well as a press conference on Friday, March 11, the ShamRock the Avenue, at the Miller Time Pub in the Hilton Hotel Downtown on March 11; and the Saturday March 12th events, the Mass in Honor of St. Patrick, the Parade, as well as a Post Parade Party all in downtown Milwaukee.

The small town of New London, which is about an hour and a half away from Hartland, has some of the oldest and most famous traditions in the state of Wisconsin.

They said on their website, “Join us in March for Wisconsin’s largest Saint Patrick’s Day Parade along with an Irish Fest in downtown New London, Wisconsin. The legendary week of festivities begin when local Shamrock Club leprechauns change the town’s name to ‘New Dublin’.”