Ireland may be the home of St. Patrick, but the U.S. has spent the last 260-plus years making the holiday its own — and in some cities, doing it bigger and louder than the Emerald Isle itself.
From river dyeing in the Midwest to centuries-old parades winding through cobblestone streets in the South, Irish American culture is deeply woven into the fabric of dozens of American towns.
Here is a list of 16 U.S. towns where the celebrations go beyond green beer and plastic shamrocks — and into genuine, heartfelt Irish tradition.
Boston, Massachusetts
Boston has more claim to the title of “Irish American capital” than almost any other city in the country. Nearly a quarter of all Boston residents trace their ancestry back to Ireland, a legacy rooted in the mass immigration that followed the Great Famine of the 1840s…