Green Day

With St. Patrick's Day fast approaching, I thought I would look into the holiday  as it was celebrated in the 18th Century.  Here are some interesting points:

Anglo-Irish satirist Jonathan Swift (late 1600's to early 1700's), or Dean Swift as he was also known (being the Dean of St. Patrick's Cathedral, Dublin), wrote about the wearing of special crosses on March 17th, as early as 1713. In writing to a friend while he was in London, he remarks, "The Irish folks were disappoited that the Parliament did not meet today, because it was St. Patrick's Day; and the mall was so full of crosses, that I thought all the world was Irish!"

Men wore a cross made of a square piece of paper, with 3" sides on which circles were drawn. The circles were painted yellow, green and red. The cross would be pinned to a cap. For girls, the cross was made of stiff card stock and pinned onto a circle of silk. The arms of the cross were then decorated with ribbons and bows.

In 1727 the Irish botanist Caleb Threlkeld identified shamrocks as white clover, stating that the plant is worn on St. Patrick's Day, as the three-leaved shape help remind the faithful of the Holy Trinity. The botanical name is Trifoleum Repens.
 By the way, why March 17th? Well, becuase on that day in the year 432, St. Patrick was captured and carried off as a slave to Ireland.
On that day in 1780, General George Washington gave a group of Irish volunteers the day off!
Finally, the Crown and thistle Tavern is the site of the first St. Paddy's Day celebration in New York City, the year 1756. And the rest is history! Chicago's green river, shot of Jameson, the piniching, the singing of classic Irish tunes, the jig, the corned beef and cabbagem, a pint or two of Guinness Personally, I look forward to the 17th to raise a glass on Green Day! Slainte!