SF's St. Patrick's Day Parade Turns 175, Thousands Fill Market Street

Bands, bagpipers, and floats filled Market Street from the Financial District to Civic Center on Saturday as thousands turned out for San Francisco's 175th St. Patrick's Day Parade, celebrated under what parade director James Quinn called "definitely one of the warmest on record" in his 26 years with the event.

The milestone drew a cross-section of the city and beyond. Phoebe Phonwang, who made the trip from Chicago, summed up the scene succinctly: "I love the bagpipes, I love the horses, I love Ireland, this is awesome." Kristy Gray came over from Alameda the way she does every year, taking the ferry across the bay. "Every year, green and white, taking the ferry from Alameda, come here hands free, no driving, candy, souvenirs, it's perfect," Gray said.

The parade carried a dual celebration this year. Saturday also marked the 250th birthday of America, a coincidence that Quinn leaned into with the parade's official theme. "The theme of our parade this year is Happy Birthday America, because you are great. America is great, not perfect but we are great, we're here to celebrate it," he said.

Mayor Daniel Lurie walked the full route to Civic Center sporting a green tie, and offered his own framing of the day's significance. "Happy St. Patrick's Day, 175 times we've done this parade in San Francisco, the Irish community is critically important to our city, they built it, and they're going to help us build the future," Lurie said.

SFPD Chief Derrick Lew, attending the parade in his official capacity for the first time since taking the role, called the experience "a real honor." Everyone, Irish or not, was channeling their Celtic side for the day.