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| {{Short description|Holiday in greater Boston, Massachusetts}} | |||
| ] in ] is '''Evacuation Day''', an official holiday commemorating the evacuation of the city of ] by ] forces during the ]. Evacuation Day is also observed in ] and ]. Schools and government offices are closed on the following Monday in observance. | |||
| {{Use American English|date=May 2021}} | |||
| {{Use mdy dates|date=May 2021}}{{Infobox holiday | |||
| |holiday_name = Evacuation Day | |||
| |type = historical | |||
| |longtype = | |||
| |image = File:The evacuation of Boston.jpg | |||
| |caption = Illustration depicting the evacuation of ] | |||
| |official_name = | |||
| |nickname = | |||
| |observedby = ] and some state offices located there<br>] public schools | |||
| |ends = | |||
| |duration = 1 day | |||
| |frequency = annual | |||
| |scheduling = same day each year | |||
| |date = March 17 | |||
| |celebrations = Commemoration ceremony at ]<br> | |||
| ] festivities | |||
| |observances = | |||
| |relatedto = ] | |||
| }} | |||
| '''Evacuation Day''' is a holiday observed on March 17 in ] (which includes the cities of ], ], and ], and the town of ]),<ref name="LegalHoliday">]</ref> and also by the public schools in ].<ref name="Somerville">]</ref> The holiday commemorates the evacuation of British forces from the city of Boston following the ], early in the ]. Schools and government offices are closed. If March 17 falls on a weekend, schools and government offices are closed on the following Monday in observance. It is the same day as ], a coincidence that played a role in the establishment of the holiday.<ref name=wbur/> | |||
| On ], ] the 11-month ] ended when the Continental Army, under General ], placed captured cannon from ] onto ] in ]. With a clear view of the city and the narrow harbor where the Royal Navy's ships were docked behind it, the Americans had ]'s garrison dead-to-rights. To prevent what would have been an inevitable slaughter of his troops, Howe agreed to retreat to ] via his ships without setting the city on fire as he left. | |||
| ==Historical background== | |||
| Boston was one of the most important ports in the New World and, ironically, one of the most defensible (there is only a single channel into the harbor which is ringed with ]). That the Americans were able to drive off several thousand hardened troops and 1,100 loyalists with only a few warning shots fired and no loss of life or property was a major accomplishment and was Washington's first victory of the war. It was also a huge morale boost for the new country, as the city where the rebellion against England started was the first to be liberated. Boston was never attacked again. | |||
| {{Further|Siege of Boston}} | |||
| The 11-month ] ended when the ] under the command of ] ] ] in early March 1776 with cannons ]. British General ] garrison and navy were threatened by these positions, and they were forced to decide between attack and retreat. Howe decided to retreat in order to prevent what could have been a repeat of the ], withdrawing from Boston to ] on March 17, 1776. | |||
| The British evacuation was Washington's first victory of the ]. It was also a huge morale boost for the ]. | |||
| After a failed movement in 1876, the holiday was finally proclaimed on the 125th anniversary in ]. Not coincidentally, this time period marks the ascendancy of Irish political power in Boston. March 17 is also ], giving Boston's large ] and Irish-descended population an additional reason to celebrate... and a day off. | |||
| ==Establishment of the holiday== | |||
| ] parades have been held in Boston since 1876, but Evacuation Day was not declared a holiday in the city until 1901<ref name="Vrabel241">], p. 241</ref> amid interest in local history that also resulted in the construction of the ]. The state made it a holiday in Suffolk County in 1938.<ref name="Vrabel241"/> The large Irish population of Boston at that time played a role in the establishment of the holiday.<ref name="OConnor124">], p. 124</ref> A 1941 law established the holiday in Suffolk County, signed in both black and green ink.<ref name=wbur>{{cite web|url=http://www.wbur.org/2010/03/12/evacuation-day-holiday|title=With A Signature In Green, St. Patrick's Day Became A Holiday|date=March 12, 2010|access-date=March 15, 2010}}</ref> | |||
| ] at Boston's 2008 St. Patrick's Day parade]] | |||
| ==Observance activities== | |||
| Evacuation Day activities are limited in the areas that observe the holiday. The Allied War Veterans of South Boston mark the day with a ceremony on Dorchester Heights.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.boston.com/news/local/breaking_news/2009/03/happy_evacuatio.html |access-date=March 17, 2009|title=Happy Evacuation Day!|first=Andrew|last=Ryan|work=Boston Globe|date=March 17, 2009}}</ref> The city of Boston offers free parking for the day. | |||
| ==Moves to eliminate holiday== | |||
| In 2010, the state legislature debated eliminating Evacuation Day and ] as official holidays, citing the expense of giving state and local workers paid days off.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.wickedlocal.com/bedford/news/x2102349834/Beacon-Hill-Roll-Call|access-date=March 15, 2010|title=Beacon Hill Roll Call|date=March 11, 2010|publisher=Gatehouse Media}}</ref> The state's 2011 budget required all state and municipal offices in Suffolk County to be open on both days.<ref>{{cite web|title=Commonwealth of Massachusetts FY2011 Budget, Outside Section 5|url=http://www.mass.gov/bb/gaa/fy2011/os_11/h5.htm|date=July 14, 2010|access-date=August 6, 2010}}</ref> | |||
| ==See also== | ==See also== | ||
| *] | *] | ||
| *] | |||
| *] | |||
| ==Notes== | |||
| {{Reflist}} | |||
| ==References== | |||
| *{{cite book|title=South Boston, My Home Town: The History of an Ethnic Neighborhood|first=Thomas H.|last=O'Connor|publisher=UPNE|year=1994|ref=OConnor|isbn=978-1-55553-188-1|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/southbostonmyhom00ocon}} | |||
| *{{cite book|title=When in Boston: a time line & almanac|first=Jim|last=Vrabel|publisher=UPNE|year=2004|isbn=978-1-55553-621-3|ref=Vrabel}} | |||
| *{{cite web|url=http://www.cpsd.us/Web/PubInfo/CPS_Calendar07-08.pdf |title=Cambridge School Calendar 2007–2008 |publisher=Cambridge Public Schools |access-date=March 17, 2009 |ref=CambridgeSchoolCalendar |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090318074918/http://www.cpsd.us/Web/PubInfo/CPS_Calendar07-08.pdf |archive-date=March 18, 2009 }} | |||
| *{{cite web|url=http://www.sec.state.ma.us/cis/cishol/holidx.htm|title=Massachusetts List of Legal Holidays|publisher=Massachusetts Secretary of State|access-date=December 16, 2008|ref=LegalHoliday}} | |||
| *{{cite web|url=http://www.somerville.k12.ma.us/education/components/docmgr/download.php?sectiondetailid=13305&fileitem=5979|format=PDF|title=Somerville School Calendar 2009|publisher=Somerville Public Schools|access-date=March 17, 2009|ref=SomervilleSchoolCalendar}}{{dead link|date=September 2017 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }} | |||
| {{U.S. Holidays}} | |||
| {{Authority control}} | |||
| ] | |||
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Latest revision as of 09:50, 9 October 2024
Holiday in greater Boston, Massachusetts
| Evacuation Day | |
|---|---|
 Illustration depicting the evacuation of Boston | |
| Observed by | Suffolk County, Massachusetts and some state offices located there Somerville, Massachusetts public schools |
| Celebrations | Commemoration ceremony at Dorchester Heights Saint Patrick's Day festivities |
| Date | March 17 |
| Next time | 17 March 2025 (2025-03-17) |
| Frequency | annual |
| Related to | Saint Patrick's Day |
Evacuation Day is a holiday observed on March 17 in Suffolk County, Massachusetts (which includes the cities of Boston, Chelsea, and Revere, and the town of Winthrop), and also by the public schools in Somerville, Massachusetts. The holiday commemorates the evacuation of British forces from the city of Boston following the siege of Boston, early in the American Revolutionary War. Schools and government offices are closed. If March 17 falls on a weekend, schools and government offices are closed on the following Monday in observance. It is the same day as Saint Patrick's Day, a coincidence that played a role in the establishment of the holiday.
Historical background
Further information: Siege of BostonThe 11-month siege of Boston ended when the Continental Army under the command of George Washington fortified Dorchester Heights in early March 1776 with cannons captured at Ticonderoga. British General William Howe's garrison and navy were threatened by these positions, and they were forced to decide between attack and retreat. Howe decided to retreat in order to prevent what could have been a repeat of the Battle of Bunker Hill, withdrawing from Boston to Nova Scotia on March 17, 1776.
The British evacuation was Washington's first victory of the war. It was also a huge morale boost for the Thirteen Colonies.
Establishment of the holiday
Saint Patrick's Day parades have been held in Boston since 1876, but Evacuation Day was not declared a holiday in the city until 1901 amid interest in local history that also resulted in the construction of the Dorchester Heights Monument. The state made it a holiday in Suffolk County in 1938. The large Irish population of Boston at that time played a role in the establishment of the holiday. A 1941 law established the holiday in Suffolk County, signed in both black and green ink.
Observance activities
Evacuation Day activities are limited in the areas that observe the holiday. The Allied War Veterans of South Boston mark the day with a ceremony on Dorchester Heights. The city of Boston offers free parking for the day.
Moves to eliminate holiday
In 2010, the state legislature debated eliminating Evacuation Day and Bunker Hill Day as official holidays, citing the expense of giving state and local workers paid days off. The state's 2011 budget required all state and municipal offices in Suffolk County to be open on both days.
See also
Notes
- List of Massachusetts holidays
- Somerville School Calendar
- ^ "With A Signature In Green, St. Patrick's Day Became A Holiday". March 12, 2010. Retrieved March 15, 2010.
- ^ Vrabel, p. 241
- O'Connor, p. 124
- Ryan, Andrew (March 17, 2009). "Happy Evacuation Day!". Boston Globe. Retrieved March 17, 2009.
- "Beacon Hill Roll Call". Gatehouse Media. March 11, 2010. Retrieved March 15, 2010.
- "Commonwealth of Massachusetts FY2011 Budget, Outside Section 5". July 14, 2010. Retrieved August 6, 2010.
References
- O'Connor, Thomas H. (1994). South Boston, My Home Town: The History of an Ethnic Neighborhood. UPNE. ISBN 978-1-55553-188-1.
- Vrabel, Jim (2004). When in Boston: a time line & almanac. UPNE. ISBN 978-1-55553-621-3.
- "Cambridge School Calendar 2007–2008" (PDF). Cambridge Public Schools. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 18, 2009. Retrieved March 17, 2009.
- "Massachusetts List of Legal Holidays". Massachusetts Secretary of State. Retrieved December 16, 2008.
- "Somerville School Calendar 2009" (PDF). Somerville Public Schools. Retrieved March 17, 2009.