St. Patrick Day celebrations are about to begin in Wisconsin! Communities across the state are planning parades, Irish dinners, and Celtic music shows. Cooks are planning their St. Patrick's Day menus, looking up recipes for corned beef and cabbage, Irish stew, and shepherd's pie. Of course, kids are begging for green-frosted cookies.
This St. Patrick's Day excitement may surprise non-Wisconsinites who associate Wisconsin's heritage with Germans, Norwegians, and Swedes. But Irish families fleeing Ireland's potato famines were Wisconsin's dominant immigrant group during the 1830's and 1840's. Irish pioneers established one of the very first Wisconsin towns, the town of Erin. For over a century, the heart of Milwaukee was Irish.
Remember, you don't have to be Irish to celebrate St. Patrick's Day. The luck of the Irish rubs off on all of us as we spread good will and laughter. So click on "Continue reading..." for links to fun things to do in Wisconsin on St. Patrick's Day.
Here's just a sample of St. Patrick's Day festivities happening in Wisconsin. Visit Travel Wisconsin to see the full schedule of events in Wisconsin.
Parades:
March 14 Milwaukee: St. Patrick's Day Parade starts at noon. Multiple parties with Irish music, dance and food follow afterward
March 14 Prairie du Chien: St. Patrick's Day Parade followed by parties held in town's restaurants.
March 14 Sturgeon Bay: St. Patrick's Day Parade starts downtown at 11:00 am.
March 14 Racine: St. Patrick's Day Parade with floats, Irish dancers and leprechauns.
March 14 Siren: St. Patrick's Day Parade in Siren then another nearby in Webb Lake. Local taverns serve GREEN beer!
March 15 Madison: St. Patrick's Day Parade around Capitol Square
March 17 Plymouth: The Irishman's Walk starts at 10:30 am and ends at an Irish Inn for food and celebration
March 17 Monroe: St. Patrick's Day Parade, complete with bag pipers.
Irish Dance and Music Shows:
March 6 Sheboygan: Green Tea performs Celtic and contemporary music
March 6-7 and March 13-14 Plymouth: Plymouth Arts Center hosts "Shamrocks and Shennanigans", a show of Irish music, dance, poetry, and folk tales
March 14 Cedarburg: Irish Eve celebration with music, food and entertainment
March 17 Wausau: ARTSblock presents Ireland's international star, Karan Casey, performing contemporary Irish music. Authentic, modern Irish cuisine served after the show.
Irish Dinners:
March 14 Brantwood: Joint celebration of St. Patrick's Day with Finnish holiday celebrating St. Urho who drove a plague of frogs and grasshoppers out of Finland. Eat Irish corned beef and cabbage then watch a re-enactment of the St. Urho legend.
March 19 Janesville: St. Patrick's Day dinner celebrating the Irish culture
So join the fun in Wisconsin and celebrate the Irish with your neighbors. Or throw a St. Patrick's Day party at home with friends by cooking Irish-inspired food. If you don't feel like cooking, here are some party-foods Wisconsin chefs can deliver to your door:
Luck of the Irish Hand-decorated Cookies
Holiday Party Cheese and Sausage Gift
St. Patrick's Day Chocolate Dunked Caramel Apples
Receive $5.00 off any Wisconsinmade.com purchase by entering this offer code with your order: FBLOG309. Offer expires April 1, 2009.
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