St. Patrick's Day during Prohibition

From a Prowse Bros. ad, presumably of an Irish man, in an October 1899 Daily Guardian.

March 14, 1892

They didn't serve green beer — or liquor of any shade — in those days, but that doesn't mean The Guardian didn't cover St. Patrick's Day like the ... condensation on the glasses containing their virgin cocktails.

The following are a few examples of the Irish entertainment enjoyed by all, if temperance-mad Guardian did say so.

March 16, 1900

The Benevolent Irish Society of Charlottetown will celebrate St. Patrick's Day on Saturday, March 17th, 1900 by the usual Parade and Church Services in the morning. In the evening at the Opera House, the BIS will offer a programme of vocal, violin and clarinet solos. There are also plans of a ball at Dodd's and Baskin's Drugstores Thursday morning. Because, you know, balls are always in the morning. At drugstores. It's a deal, though, with admission 35c for reserved seats!

The Benevolent Irish Society was suitably impressed with the reception members received in Charlottetown, apparently, running this ad the next day:

You know what we don't have enough of anymore? Bunting!

Not in Town for St. Patrick's Day? The citizens of Souris also knew how to paint the town ... green. In fact, the newspaper reported, "St. Patrick's Day seems to be the national holiday of the Village." The activity offered, suitably enough at St. Patrick's Hall, was a Grand Dramatic Entertainment on the topic of a Schooner adventure seven years ago. Maybe not as authentically Irish as the offering in the capital, but the play was a hit, nonetheless. 

Writes The Guardian:

"The applause which greeted ... the presentation showed that the audience, at any rate were well pleased with what had been done. It was nearly eleven o'clock when the curtain was rung down on the last act; and the inspiring strains of the National Anthem, which this year more than ever before seems to stir the hearts of the people, brought the entertainment to a close."

Eleven o'clock, even!

March 19, 1900

Meanwhile, in Mount Stewart in 1891, the occasion was celebrated with pie — and raised $66 to build a new Methodist Parsonage:

April 1, 1891

And you can't have St. Patrick's Day on Prince Edward Island without doings in the Kellys Cross/Shamrock region. Here's how the people of Emerald did up St. Paddy's Day:

March 22, 1899

Once again, we have grabbed these clippings from the islandnewspapers.ca collection.