Here in New Orleans, and the rest of the country, we celebrate the Irish holiday of St. Patrick’s Day by wearing green, donning shamrocks, drinking green beer and Guinness and eating green and Irish food.

We pinch those foolish enough to forget their green clothing while proudly displaying our “Kiss Me, I’m Irish” shirts.

Parades and block parties, especially in New Orleans, celebrate St. Patrick’s Day all over the city. Though it isn’t a national holiday in the U.S., it doesn’t stop us, Irish or not, from celebrating this holiday jovially with the best of ‘em!

Aside from the festivities, St. Patrick’s Day is a national holiday in Ireland, and there is a story behind this holiday.

Saint Patrick was a Christian missionary and patron saint of Ireland. He was brought to Ireland at 16 when he was captured from Roman Britain and brought to the country to be a slave. He escaped and returned home six years later, joining the church to become a bishop.

He later made his way back to Ireland to work as a missionary. The exact dates of his life cannot be determined, but it is thought that he died on March 17, deeming it the day of his feast. However, the Roman Catholic Church will change the day if it falls during Holy Week, as it does this year so St. Patrick’s Day is on March 15. Also, if the holiday falls on Sunday, it’s usually celebrated the following Monday.

The first parade held in the Irish Free State took place in Dublin in 1931. The holiday remained a religious observance despite secular celebrations.

In fact, it wasn’t until the 1990s that the Irish government began using March 17 as a campaign to showcase the Irish culture. Irish colonists brought St. Patrick’s Day to the U.S., and the fi rst stateside celebration was in 1737 in Boston, Massachusetts. The Charitable Irish Society of Boston hosted the fi rst St. Patrick’s Day parade during the fi rst celebration. The shamrock is a symbol of Ireland, and has even been registered as a trademark of the Republic of Ireland. The Irish shamrock isn’t the four-leafclover we searched for in fi elds as children.

The Irish shamrock has three leaves which is a religious symbol representing the Holy Trinity. While most shamrocks have three leaves, four-leaf-clovers are fabled to bring good luck. The Irish word for shamrock is “seamarog,” which was anglicized into shamrock.

Irish Channel – St. Patrick’s Day Marching Club

To understand the history of this unique club, one must start with understanding the history of the Irish Channel…a part of the city with a character all its own!

This neighborhood is located near the Mississippi river around Jackson Avenue in Uptown New Orleans. As the name implies this working class neighborhood was settled by Irish immigrants fl eeing the potato famine in the early 1800s, but not without the help of immigrants from many other ethnicities, including German, Italian and African-American.

In the beginning of this neighborhoods history, many of the residents worked in the port before technological advances rid the port of many employees. Local breweries also employed some of the residents as well. The Irish of New Orleans were considered “expendable” labor, and many were killed in hazardous occupational environments.

Today, the majority of this melting pot of a neighborhood is occupied by African-Americans, and is known today for its fantastic St. Patrick’s Day celebration.

Metairie Road St. Patrick’s Day Parade

New Orleans isn’t light of places to go and parades to see for St. Patrick’s Day. You can take in a parade in the French Quarter, on Magazine Street or on Veterans Memorial Boulevard in Metairie. You can have a glass of green beer at Parasol’s block party or partake in some festival fun at the benefi t block party an Annunciation Square playground.

No matter your choice, one thing is for certain…you can’t miss the Metairie Road St. Patrick’s Day parade! A favorite among New Orleanians, this parade impresses locals and tourists alike.

The parade kicks off the Saturday before St. Patrick’s Day at noon and runs the traditional Metairie Road route through Old Metairie. Be a part of the growing crowd of revelers, which has now reached over a million, that flock to Metairie Road.

The parade includes 52 trucks, 34 floats, 13 marching clubs (two of which are women’s marching clubs), plus mini-floats for a total of 110 parading units.

What began as a few dozen units has grown signifi cantly in the last 38 years, as Captain and founder John Marchese will tell you. Marchese served as the President of the Turn Bull Marching Club years ago. After parading through the Irish Channel, Marchese decided it was time that Old Metairie had its own St. Patrick’s Day parade. He approached the powers that be with his idea, and once he promised to make the decision-making man of Jefferson Parish Grand Marshal, parade plans were underway!

Thirty-eight years later, the Metairie Road parade has a list of over 30 units eagerly waiting their turn to take part in this Old Metairie tradition.

Part of the success of this parade must be attributed to Marchese’s dedication to safety. He is unfaltering in this area of the parade, and cabbages are never thrown to parade goers. Anything with a stem is handed out as well to avoid injury. Second floor float riders are only given beads and other throws that are safe for bystanders to catch. Marchese said he waits at the end of the route once his ride is over to make sure everyone fi nished safely. Now that’s dedication!