Episode Details

The first ever St. Patrick’s Day parade took place not in Ireland, as many people might expect, but in Spanish Florida, on March 17, 1601. It wasn’t until about 100 years later that the world famous parades got going in Boston and New York City.

Historian J. Michael Francis made the discovery of this unexpectedly early celebration of Ireland’s patron saint while investigating the Spanish imperial history of the Floridian city of St. Augustine. 

In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly explain why for around 50 years up until the 1970s all pubs in Ireland were closed on St. Patrick’s Day; discuss what gunpowder had to do with the first St. Patrick’s Day parade; and reveal where corned beef and cabbage really come from… 

 Further Reading:

• ‘Where the first St. Patrick's Day parade REALLY took place’ (Daily Mail, 2018): https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-5511205/First-St-Paddys-parade-took-place-FLORIDA-century-NYs.html 

• ‘First St. Patrick’s Day parade’ (History.com, 2010): https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/first-st-patricks-day-parade 

• ‘A Brief History of St. Patrick's Day’ (ABC News, 2017): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=40BlVzjxu-I 

Love the show? Support us! 

Join  🌴CLUB RETROSPECTORS🌴to DITCH THE ADS and get an additional full-length episode each SUNDAY… 

… Plus, get weekly bonus bits, and unlock over 100 bits of extra content. 

Join now with a free trial on Apple Podcasts or Patreon and support our show ❤️

The Retrospectors are Olly Mann, Rebecca Messina & Arion McNicoll, with Matt Hill.

Theme Music: Pass The Peas. Announcer: Bob Ravelli. Graphic Design: Terry Saunders. Edit Producer: Ollie Peart.

Copyright: Rethink Audio / Olly Mann 2026.

This episode originally aired in 2023.

#1600s #US #Strange

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices