Organizers prepare for Atlanta's St. Patrick's Parade

ATLANTA - Atlanta’s St. Patrick’s Parade has been around a long time.  Like, a really long time.  The first time it happened, James Buchanan was President.

Since its relatively humble beginnings in 1858, the Atlanta St. Patrick’s Parade has grown into a major celebration of Irish culture in the city — and this weekend, several blocks of Peachtree Street will once again turn green in honor of Ireland’s patron saint.

Although similar events across the country have been cancelled, this year’s Atlanta St. Patrick’s Parade is still scheduled to take place on Saturday, March 14th, stepping off at Noon at Peachtree and 15th Streets, near the Woodruff Arts Center.  The parade route continues south on Peachtree Street, ending near the intersection with 5th Street and lasting roughly 90 minutes total.  Presented by the Irish Network Atlanta, participants in this year’s parade include several Irish dance companies (including those from the Drake School of Irish Dance), traditional pipes and drums bands, and even the much-loved Twilight Twirlers, a troupe of majorettes made up of local women over the age of 45.  Oh, and keep your eyes out for a Star Wars sandcrawler, built by members of the 501st Legion, a volunteer-run organization dedicated to promoting interest in the Star Wars franchise.  

Now, to a few orders of business.  There will be street closures due to Saturday’s parade, and a map of those closures may be found here.  As for parking, well, you know the drill — spectators are strongly encouraged to use MARTA, and it’s recommended they arrive by 11:00 a.m. to secure a good viewing spot along the route.

The Good Day feature team didn’t just arrive an hour early for the parade — we arrived five days early!  We spent the morning at Colony Square, getting a special preview of this year’s big event.  Click the video player in this article to check it out!