South Boston St. Patrick's Day Parade 2024
When:
Sunday, Mar 17, 2024 1:00p -
5:00p
Sunday, Mar 17, 2024 1:00p -
5:00p
Where:
Broadway MBTA Stop to Farragut Road
W Broadway
Boston, MA
Admission:
FREE
Categories:
Drinks, Festivals & Fairs, Good for Groups, Music, Outside, Party
Event website:
https://southbostonparade.org/
The South Boston St. Patrick’s Day/Evacuation Day Parade returns to take place on Sunday March 17th 2024.
In Boston, St. Patrick’s Day is observed annually with a parade that takes place in South Boston, the city's predominant Irish-American neighborhood. The parade has been a tradition in South Boston for more than 110 years, with the first procession taking place in 1902. It includes various marching bands, police and army contingents, costume spectacles, novelty vehicles, and a general "green" atmosphere due to participants and onlookers wearing green hats and accessories to reflect the association of the color with Irish culture.
PARADE History
Bostonians were the first to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day in North America. On March 17, 1737, as a gesture of solidarity among the city’s new Irish immigrants, Boston’s Irish community joined together in festivities of their homeland and to honor the memory of the below Patron Saint of Ireland.
In 1901, the parade moved to South Boston, a neighborhood that was not only home to a robust Irish community, but was the site of Dorchester Heights, where the evacuation of British troops from Boston on March 17, 1776 was made possible and is commemorated. Given the significance of both the St. Patrick’s Day and Evacuation Day holidays, the parade came to honor both. Starting in 1901, the annual parade became a dual-hatted celebration of St. Patrick’s Day and Irish heritage, as well as military service and the commemoration of Evacuation Day. Each year, the parade occurs on the Sunday closest to March 17th, with a commitment to keeping alive the tradition of honoring heritage and service.
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Photo by Maia Kennedy Photography
