WELLSVILLE — Everyone was Irish Friday as hundreds of watchers witnessed the Ancient Order of Hibernians Shortest St. Patrick’s Day Parade making history — and maybe setting a world record in Wellsville.
The sidewalk and street were crowded well beyond the 12-foot-long parade route, which stretched from the Wellsville Brewing Co. to From the Hart Irish store across the alleyway. With the American Legion 702 Auxiliary Color Guard leading, the parade stepped off at 4:31 p.m.
The parade included the Shenangan Sisters, a group of more than a dozen women outfitted in mostly green and singing and dancing, and the Emerald Hook and Ladder fire truck and green-jacketed members of the department. The parade with more than 15 units took about 15 minutes.
The end of the parade did not mark the end of the festivities. With drinks in hand, due to the temporary lifting of the open container law for the event, celebrants lingered on the street mingling and talking with friends.
The event was conceived, according to Brian Cannon of the Ancient Order of Hibernians, as an end-of-winter event to get people out and getting together again. It accomplished that, despite a few raindrops.
While the length of the parade route was certified by a professional surveyor at the start, and a drone was filming the event from the air, it is not yet known if the event will be submitted to the Guiness Book of World Records to be certified as the Shortest St. Patrick’s Day Parade in the World.