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Shamrocks, shillelaghs, soda bread and all things Irish!

Montrealers get ready to celebrate 183th consecutive St. Patrick's Day parade

par Toula Foscolos
Voir tous les articles de Toula Foscolos
Article mis en ligne le 13 mars 2007 à 10:31
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Montrealers get ready to celebrate 183th consecutive St. Patrick's Day parade

What started off as a religious holiday to honour Ireland's patron saint has turned into a full-fledged party around the world and an annual rite of spring for winter-weary Montrealers. This year will certainly be no exception, and come Sunday, March 18, one hopes the luck of the Irish will be shining down on us!

It's no secret that Montreal is second to none when it comes to North American St. Patrick's Day celebrations. Well, ok… Maybe New York has the largest parade, with over 2 million spectators, but Montreal boasts the longest running parade, held in continuity since 1824, making the 2007 edition the 183th.

Once again, this year, the United Irish Societies of Montreal are gearing up with events and celebrations around town, culminating with the Sunday morning parade that turns into a day of fun and downtown bar-hopping for many, which may sound like a whole lot of revelling, until you learn that in Dublin, Ireland, St. Patrick's Day is celebrated with a… five-day festival!

Verdun connection

Steeped in Irish traditions and with many long-time residents in the borough still maintaining strong Irish roots, it's no surprise that the Verdun borough always seems to play some small or large role in the annual event. Every year, there's a small reception to welcome the Queen (this year, the honour goes to Andrea McGlynn) and her court at the Verdun borough offices and, once again, the borough will be sending its float to the parade and some of the borough councillors will probably be making an appearance. What's more, a member of the Queen's Court hails from Verdun!

Princess Allison Pollock

@R2:Twenty-four Allison Pollock, one of the four princesses chosen to be in this year's parade, resides right here in this borough. Her father was born in Belfast, Northern Ireland and her mother was born in Sunderland, England, but she grew up in the West Island and now makes her home in Verdun.

Allison is currently studying at McGill University and completing a Master of Science degree in Food Science and hopes to one day work in the food industry or government, focusing on food safety issues. Growing up, Allison was a competitive synchronized swimmer and was also recently involved with a Masters swimming club.

Sunday, March 18 parade

The St. Patrick's Day parade in Montreal begins at noon sharp, at the corner of Fort and Ste. Catherine Streets and continues eastbound down Ste. Catherine. In a city that sometimes seems to suffer from too much political talk, St. Patrick's Day is a holiday with no political undertones, hijacked from the Irish and given to the masses – of all ethnic backgrounds. Whatever party you plan on voting for, come March 26, on St. Patrick's Day, go Green!

Little known facts about St. Patrick's Day

Although St. Patrick's Day has the colour of green as its theme, it was once orange and blue that were the colours of the day.

-Some groups, notably Guinness beer, have lobbied to make St. Patrick's Day a federal (national) holiday

- Traditionally, those who are caught not wearing green, are pinched.

- Although garlands and shamrocks adorn every Irish pub, the official emblem of Ireland is the Celtic or Irish harp.

- The City of Chicago paints its river green for St. Patrick's Day!

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