I have a lot of mid-March #historical anniversaries to catch up on, but it's been a long week, so let's just focus on March 17, #SaintPatrick's day or otherwise.
Some colleagues and I got a head start last night at The Hangar in Hadley, where they had Guinness for $3--so, whether watching #MarchMadness or just thinking of #Ireland--who could resist?
View from behind the pub area, where further stock is stored.
1/n
Here in the Bay State, #SaintPatrick'ss Day is a state holiday
In March 1776 the Revolutionaries moved cannon captured at Ticonderoga to Dorchester Heights overlooking Boston & fortified positions there. Faced with a hopeless situation, the British abandoned the city on March 17.
https://guides.bpl.org/marev/1776
In 1901, #Boston officially celebrated #EvacuationDay, thus commemorating Washington's 1st victory in the Revolution—& #StPatrick's Day
(I saw what U did there)
2/n
When we think of the major #SaintPatrick's Day parades, it is naturally those of #NewYork & #Boston.
So, if #Holyoke, #Massachusetts (2nd-largest in the country) is not on their radar screens (https://www.thereminder.com/features/page2feature/second-largest-st-patricks-day-parade-in-nation-re/), you can be pretty sure they are not thinking of #Savannah, #Georgia, which lays claim to being the second-oldest in the world (https://www.savannahsaintpatricksday.com/)
You are welcome.
#Irish #heritage is everywhere!
3/n
Here, in #Amherst #Massachusetts, #university students 3 decades ago engaged in the #Blarney Blowout" in which they drink themselves to the point of sickness or antisocial behavior.
Town & Gown thought they had the problem solved, but it is out of hand again. The innovation this time was "blackout rage gallons"--jugs of alcohol, electrolytes, & water. Note #Holocaust "joke."
College binge drinking on ‘borgs’ leads to record visits to Cooley Dickinson Hospital https://www.gazettenet.com/UMass-town-react-to-a-weekend-of-borg-drinking-50165727
4/n
Amherst residents are justifiably upset over UMass student drunken excesses during "Blarney Blowout"
Some of the proposed solutions are as idiotic as they are understandable: ban liquor sales not only in Amherst but also in neighboring towns
Fat chance.
+ even the dumbest college student would be smart enough to stock up in advance
More creative: #Irish-American friends of mine founded the Amherst Irish Association to combat stereotypes of Irish drunkenness
5/n
Ultimately. controlling student behavior is a matter of culture, not strictures.
A decade ago, we were in Savannah just after #SaintPatrick's Day: In a city in which it is legal to drink in public (in the #historic district) & despite the hordes of visitors, the scene was infinitely more tranquil than in tiny Amherst
I blogged about that http://tofindtheprinciples.blogspot.com/2012/07/stripping-vomiting-and-drinking.html
& the history of student misbehavior http://tofindtheprinciples.blogspot.com/2012/10/as-way-of-youth-is-boorish-student.html
back when blogging was a thing
Plus ça change
To turn to more edifying #Irish topics of interest to #MaterialCulture @histodons:
My "haystack" measure made by Joseph Austin & Son of Cork, c. 1828-33. It held 1 noggin=1 gill=1/4 pint=5 imperial fl. oz.
These delightful measures were never exported to the United States & are therefore found here either because Irish immigrants brought them with them or because collectors later acquired them. The marks are of the reign of George IV, when it was made, William IV, & apparently, George V
6/n
And finally for a more silly/humorous tribute to #Irish culture
Pitch 'n' Putt with Joyce 'n' Beckett - YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p856CfM64w8&t=2s
7/n
@CitizenWald I actually think being a big city is a plus here. You have a higher like background # of bars and people drinking so there’s less of a drinking glut and a smaller % of the population is students so it *feels* less overpowering
@Publicuniversal Agree, though hard to quantify the student factor. More generally: I went to college when the drinking age was 18, and, sure some idiots fresh off the farm got wasted every night at first, but--same logic as yours--having alcohol available in supervised settings, including a great student center bar (https://uwunionstory.org/story/1928/battle-of-beer-and-wine + https://onwisconsin.uwalumni.com/uws-unofficial-town-hall/) made for generally more responsible behavior.
+ Savannah shows that open containers as such not necessarily a problem
@CitizenWald yea, I feel like it was the same for me when I went to school and people just went to frats to get drunk-there was a like month or so window when people would just PARTAYYY every damn night and then the first midterms came round, the novelty of "I can do stuff without my parents telling me off" wore off, and people cooled off to a normal friday/saturday fun schedule.
@CitizenWald I went to UMass in the early 80s and I never heard of the Blarney Blowout.
'80s UMass would've been before my time here. It started in the '90s, apparently, but I don't recall it being a big thing (or problem) until maybe 15 years ago
@CitizenWald I read about Blarney Blowout several years ago and how UMass tried to end it by having concerts and other events. Is that still going on?
@historian1661 Yes, or at least in general (less familiar with the intricate detail since I left town government). The university certainly tightened up visitor policy (no overnight guests) and keg policy etc. and tried to provide alternative entertainment. Plus police enforcement, tho that got controversial one year:
https://www.masslive.com/news/2014/09/edward_davis_report_blarney_blowout.html.
Things improved somewhat afterward. Problem is, these dudes start first thing Saturday morning...PLUS using nasty new intoxicants
@CitizenWald “The first St. Patrick's Day parade in downtown #Chicago was held on March 17, 1843.” #stpatricksday https://chicagology.com/irishinchicago/stpatricksday/