St. Patrick’s Day parades will be held across the United States on Saturday, with pledges to turn Midwestern rivers green, marking a major anniversary in the South and naming the first female leader of a major beer company as New York’s grand marshal in a pre-statehood ceremony. parade

The holiday honors Ireland’s patron saint and is popular primarily among Irish Catholic immigrants. Although St. Patrick’s Day falls on March 17, it is celebrated with a large parade a day early, so it does not fall on Sunday, the day of worship for Christians.

Manhattan’s St. Patrick’s Day Parade dates back to 1762 and is one of the largest celebrations of Irish heritage in the world. There was a large turnout for the march along the 2.4-kilometer route of Manhattan’s Fifth Avenue, which was expected to last more than five hours.

On Saturday, Heineken CEO Maggie Timone is scheduled to serve as grand marshal of the Manhattan parade, according to organizers. Originally from Ireland, she was the first female CEO of a major beer company.

New York City holds multiple parades on different dates across its five boroughs, including its first St. Patrick’s Day parade on Sunday, allowing LGBTQ+ groups to march in Staten Island.

Mayor Eric Adams announced plans last month for the new privately organized celebration, which comes after years of requests from local groups to participate in the borough’s decades-old parade. The long-running event, which does not allow groups to march under the LGBTQ+ flag, took place earlier this month.

After decades of protests, legal challenges and resistance from some politicians, the Manhattan parade began allowing LGBTQ+ groups and symbols in 2015.

The Chicago Plumbers Union is turning the Chicago River green again. Organizers say the tradition, started by the union, uses an environmentally friendly powder once used to check for leaks in pipelines.

In Savannah, Georgia, organizers expect historic crowds to attend the parade, which began in 1824. Nearly 18,000 hotel rooms have been booked for the weekend in Georgia’s oldest city ahead of the 200th anniversary.