Saint Patrick might not have been Irish, but he is one of three patron saints of Ireland and certainly did enough to merit his holiday.
Now it seems like everybody is Irish. Or at least Irish enough to celebrate his feast day.
"People who can claim Irish descent account for about 10 percent of the U.S. population, the third most common of the European ancestry groups (although German is still number one). There are more people of Irish descent in the diaspora worldwide than in Ireland, and unlike German heritage, which carries the weight of two World Wars, Irish ancestry is the least politically compromised ethnic identity to claim as a connection for many people in the U.S." says Bettina Arnold, Professor, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.
So with great help from our friends at WalletHub, here are the best cities to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day. In no particular order:
Boston, Massachusetts
Does it get much better than this? Boston is a quintessential Irish town. It has a plethora of pubs and churches.
"There's a long tradition of St. Patrick's Day celebrations in the United States. The earliest one was in Boston in 1737, it was organized by Presbyterian immigrants from the north of Ireland," says Karen Sonnelitter, Ph.D. – Professor of History, Department Chair at Siena College.
Very few cities can compare to Boston, except...
Chicago, Illinois
Turning the Chicago River green for the parade is a rite of passage in this town. It has been the backdrop of many television and movie scenes, including the parade sequence in the film The Fugitive.
Band plays during a St. Patrick's Day parade. (Photo Credit: motionshooter/Adobe Stock)
New York City
WalletHub predicts that more than $7 billion will be spent nationwide on St. Patrick’s Day. Here’s a good bet that the bulk of it will happen here.
Dublin, Ireland
This is like a bucket list trip. There might be nothing greater than being in the Motherland for its most famous holiday.
Milwaukee, Wisconsin
This rugged, blue-collar town is not far from Chicago. Milwaukee, Wisconsin, has the lowest average beer price.
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Talk about your rugged, blue-collar towns, this is it. Pittsburgh truly embraces the spirit of the holiday.
Naperville, Illinois
Don’t be surprised. This suburb of Chicago has the highest share of the Irish population, which is 48.3 times greater than in Hialeah, Florida, the city with the lowest, according to WalletHub.
Naperville also has the lowest violent crime rate of any of the destinations analyzed.
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