St. Patrick's Day

Factoids today, beginning with:

St. Patrick

• Born in Britain
• Kidnapped at age 16 by Irish raiders and held captive in Ireland
• He was a shepherd in Ireland, quite solitary
• Escaped back to Britain after 6 years
• Studied 15 years and became a priest, then went back to Ireland as a missionary
• Began converting the Irish to Christianity, although there was already a small number of Christians on the island
• St. Patrick's Day is the date he is believed to have died, around the year 460
• The driving the snakes out of Ireland legend is a myth

St. Patrick's Day

• An Irish religious holiday, church in the morning and dinner in the afternoon
• For dinner: Irish bacon and cabbage
• Until the 1970's, pubs were closed on St. Pat's Day in Ireland

St. Patrick's Day Parade

• First one held in New York City in 1762
• It was Irish soldiers serving in the English military
• There were numerous parades held annually until 1848, when the various Irish aide societies combined to sponsor the parade, now the longest running in the country.

Enjoy the day!