The St. Patrick's Day Parade

The grand symbol of St. Patrick's Day, the annual parade in New York City, began as a small celebration by Irish soldiers serving in the British Army in the 1700s. It would take waves of Irish immigrants in the 1800s to transform the parade into a colossal public event.

There were plenty of controversies on the way, and even a few riots, but by the late 1800s the parade had become a symbol of Irish-American respectability and political influence.