{"id":106716,"date":"2026-04-20T16:55:47","date_gmt":"2026-04-20T21:55:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/news.medill.northwestern.edu\/chicago\/?p=106716"},"modified":"2026-04-20T16:55:47","modified_gmt":"2026-04-20T21:55:47","slug":"watch-st-patricks-day-in-chicago-a-centurylong-tradition","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/news.medill.northwestern.edu\/chicago\/watch-st-patricks-day-in-chicago-a-centurylong-tradition\/","title":{"rendered":"WATCH: St. Patrick&#8217;s Day in Chicago: A centurylong tradition"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">By Ryan Kirton<\/span><\/b><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;335551550&quot;:1,&quot;335551620&quot;:1}\"><br \/>\n<\/span><i><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Medill Reports<\/span><\/i><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;335551550&quot;:1,&quot;335551620&quot;:1}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Chicago is one of the most popular places to celebrate St. Patrick\u2019s Day in the country. Ryan Kirton looks at how this came to be, and what it means for the city of Chicago.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559740&quot;:240}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><iframe title=\"St. Patrick&#039;s Day in Chicago\" src=\"https:\/\/player.vimeo.com\/video\/1184966362?dnt=1&amp;app_id=122963\" width=\"800\" height=\"450\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"autoplay; fullscreen; picture-in-picture; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559740&quot;:240}\">\u00a0<\/span><b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">TRANSCRIPT<\/span><\/b><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559740&quot;:240}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">NARRATION: Stock up on green clothes, Chicago. You\u00a0don\u2019t\u00a0want to be caught without them on Sait.\u00a0Patrick&#8217;s Day.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559740&quot;:240}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">JOHN DIPRIMA:\u00a0It&#8217;s\u00a0kind of our\u00a0version of Mardi Gras, I suppose. The French people in New Orleans have that, this is what the Irish people in Chicago have.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559740&quot;:240}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">NARRATION: Chicago gets\u00a0very passionate\u00a0about celebrating\u00a0Saintt.\u00a0Patrick&#8217;s Day. This is because Irish history is rooted in the city&#8217;s identity.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559740&quot;:240}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">BRIAN DONOVAN: They got, you know, came here, got involved and prospered.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559740&quot;:240}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">NARRATION: Take Brian Donovan, a\u00a0member\u00a0and volunteer at the Irish American Heritage Center for over 40 years. Donovan says some of his family members moved to the U.S. from Ireland in the 1870s.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559740&quot;:240}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">DONOVAN: They were involved in dance. They were involved in owning a pub, restaurant, bowling\u00a0alley\u00a0and swimming pool in New York. My mother&#8217;s side\u00a0were\u00a0lacemakers.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559740&quot;:240}\"> \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">NARRATION: The American Enterprise Institute found that Cook County has the largest Irish population of any\u00a0U.S.\u00a0county. Many of their ancestors fled Ireland in the mid-1800s due to famine.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559740&quot;:240}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">DONOVAN: Originally it was people from Limerick that came here. They had the means to come at the time. They were already coming here because Ireland at that time was one of the most populated countries in Europe.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559740&quot;:240}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">NARRATION: They helped transform Chicago into what it is today.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559740&quot;:240}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">DONOVAN: The Whistlers\u00a0literally built\u00a0the first and the second Fort Dearborn. Construction companies that had worked on the Erie Canal came to Michigan and then to Illinois to work on canals.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559740&quot;:240}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">NARRATION: And even now, Irish businesses can be found\u00a0all across\u00a0the city.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559740&quot;:240}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">MICHAEL HUGHES: My parents were both from Ireland, raised in Ireland.\u00a0So\u00a0it&#8217;s\u00a0very important. My dad was still in good health at the time. He could give me a hand with that because he loved talking to people, and\u00a0he&#8217;s\u00a0a good\u00a0salesman.\u00a0So\u00a0it was\u00a0kind of a\u00a0family thing.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559740&quot;:240}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">NARRATION: But many locals find St.\u00a0Patrick&#8217;s Day to be the most notable Irish contribution.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559740&quot;:240}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">MADISON CASEY: When there are community gatherings for the Irish and Irish Americans here, especially around St.\u00a0Patrick&#8217;s Day, a lot of it involves dancing, music, festivals, really\u00a0good\u00a0food. Really anything you can think of that reminds people of home back in Ireland.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559740&quot;:240}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">NARRATION: The holiday began to honor St.\u00a0Patrick, who brought Christianity to Ireland. Now\u00a0it&#8217;s\u00a0celebrated all over the world. Ireland even learned a thing or two about celebrating the holiday from the Americans.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559740&quot;:240}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">DONOVAN: The St.\u00a0Patrick&#8217;s Day parade\u00a0wasn&#8217;t\u00a0a big thing\u00a0in Dublin\u00a0until all the American pipe bands and other groups asked about how they\u00a0participated\u00a0in that parade, and then they decided it would be a good tourist attraction.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559740&quot;:240}\">\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559740&quot;:240}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">KIRTON: A 2025 WalletHub survey called Chicago the sixth best city in the U.S.\u00a0to celebrate St.\u00a0Patrick&#8217;s Day.\u00a0It&#8217;s\u00a0why\u00a0for\u00a0a few days every year,\u00a0the Chicago River\u00a0wears\u00a0some green of its own.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559740&quot;:240}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">JOHN DIPRIMA:\u00a0You&#8217;d\u00a0be surprised how many people fly to Chicago just for\u00a0river dyeing.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559740&quot;:240}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">NARRATION: As a result, businesses like Lizzie McNeill\u2019s Irish Pub and Donegal Imports experience a holiday rush.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559740&quot;:240}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">MICHAEL HUGHES: I think a lot more people are coming around for this time of year.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559740&quot;:240}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">MICHAEL RYAN: I actually used to come here before I started working here.\u00a0It&#8217;s\u00a0very hectic, in\u00a0a good way. Like,\u00a0there\u2019s\u00a0a line across the river.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559740&quot;:240}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">MADISON CASEY: Chicago is one of those wonderful cities here in the U.S.\u00a0where if anyone hears that\u00a0you&#8217;re\u00a0part Irish, or you came here from Ireland, or you have just a little bit of Irish in you, it just sparks a wonderful conversation. And\u00a0it\u00a0kind of just\u00a0brings people together naturally and super quickly.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559740&quot;:240}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">NARRATION: St.\u00a0Patrick&#8217;s Day continues to be celebrated all around the world. But Chicago, a hub\u00a0of the Irish\u00a0American culture, always draws a lively crowd. In Chicago, Ryan Kirton, Medill Reports.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559740&quot;:240}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><i><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Ryan Kirton is a sports media specialization graduate student at Medill.<\/span><\/i><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559740&quot;:240}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>By Ryan Kirton Medill Reports\u00a0 Chicago is one of the most popular places to celebrate St. Patrick\u2019s Day in the country. Ryan Kirton looks at how this came to be, and what it means for the city of Chicago.\u00a0 &nbsp; \u00a0TRANSCRIPT\u00a0 NARRATION: Stock up on green clothes, Chicago. You\u00a0don\u2019t\u00a0want to be caught without them on [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":765,"featured_media":106717,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[194,3944,5543,5555],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-106716","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-arts-culture","category-chicagoriver","category-msj26","category-spring-2026"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.6 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>WATCH: St. Patrick&#039;s Day in Chicago: A centurylong tradition - Medill Reports Chicago<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/news.medill.northwestern.edu\/chicago\/watch-st-patricks-day-in-chicago-a-centurylong-tradition\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"WATCH: St. Patrick&#039;s Day in Chicago: A centurylong tradition - Medill Reports Chicago\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"By Ryan Kirton Medill Reports\u00a0 Chicago is one of the most popular places to celebrate St. Patrick\u2019s Day in the country. 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Ryan Kirton looks at how this came to be, and what it means for the city of Chicago.\u00a0 &nbsp; \u00a0TRANSCRIPT\u00a0 NARRATION: Stock up on green clothes, Chicago. 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