Fun Facts About St. Patrick's Day

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Did you know that Chicago dumps 40 tons of green day into their Chicago river for the celebration each year on St. Patrick's Day? This has been going on since 1962. This day was considered a religious holiday in Ireland for most of the 20th century and so all pubs were closed on March 17th. It was not until 1970 that the holiday was converted to a national day and so pubs were open again. Saint Patrick was famous for introducing christianity to Ireland but, he was actually born in Scotland or Wales in the 4th century. Also, his color was actually blue but the color green became associated with the holiday when it was to the Irish independent movement. Parades are held all over the U.S. on St.Patrick's Day with the largest one in the world held in New York City. New Orleans also holds a large one and is famous for throwing onions, cabbages and potatoes all ingredients for a Irish stew. Picture courtesy of Flickr.com