Article, Photos : Len Rapoport
St. Patrick’s Day Parade is a cultural and religious celebration held on this year on 16 March. It marks the traditional death date of Saint Patrick (c. AD 385–461), the foremost patron saint of Ireland.[1] The day commemorates Saint Patrick and the arrival of Christianity in Ireland,[3] and celebrates the heritage and culture of the Irish in general.
Grand Marshal was Grand Marshal Dr. Brian O’Dwyer
Dr. O’Dwyer has been an advocate in promoting immigrant and human rights. The Catholic Church has recognized him for his works and he has been named as a Knight of the Holy Sepulcher, a papal knighthood conferred by Edward Cardinal Egan. He has received The Child of Peace Award by the Catholic Home Bureau as well as the Ellis Island Medal of Honor.
Cardinal Timothy Dolan, Archbishop of New York
Presided the mass at St. Patrick’s Cathedral and then came out on the steps of the church to greet spectators.
The parade kicked off at 11am at 44th Street and 5th Ave, continuing nearly two miles north all the way up to 79th Street, ending around 5pm.
I was on the streets early so I could set up and get a good vantage point for my photos. I decided that the corner of 57th Street would be ideal. A view of Central Park and the beautiful Plaza Hotel.
The Parade Line-Up
This is the largest parade in New York City and the marchers are made up of the police, fire department, all branches of the armed services and of course bands and marchers from high schools, Irish societies, dignitaries, elected officials and religious leaders who march proudly and celebrate their Irish heritage.
You can download the complete 2019 “Line of the March” by clicking this link 2016LoM. This document shows all the groups participating in the parade and the times they will be at various spots in the parade.
As the saying goes, “You Don’t Have To Be Irish, To Be Green” and today the hundreds of thousands of people who attended the parade and the millions that have watched its telecast to millions of homes around the world will agree to that simple statement.
Parade Route
The parades formation area was on 44th street, between 5th and Madison Ave. The parade whistles blew at 11:00 AM and the marchers began their march from 44th street and continued up 5th Avenue, past the reviewers stand at 62nd Street and the second Chief reviewing stand at 64th Street. The parade ended on 79th Street.
There were a number of staging points on the Parade route, starting at 44th street to the last staging area on 48th street. So we had to position ourselves in various locations along the parade route to get the photos you see here. We started shooting at 57th Street which was a nice open area for our video work. Later in the day we moved down to 53rd Street and walked down to 51st Street past St. Patrick’s Cathedral where we were able to get some photos of the photos of the invited quests of the church.
Our St. Patrick’s Day Photo Gallery
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