On the morning of Saturday, March 15th, many onlookers excitedly waited alongside the Chicago River. Many in this audience will later find themselves at what is, according to CBS, “the largest St. Patrick’s Day community-based parade outside of Dublin, Ireland.” But in the late hours of the morning, they are waiting for two boats: the boat that dumps the green dye into the Chicago River, and the boat that stirs it into the water.
The dyeing of the Chicago River is a 63-year old tradition that occurs annually for Patrick’s Day. The custom is seen as a lively event that kicks off the city’s celebrations later on and into the day after, but it has its roots in unexpected places. After all, it isn’t poured by representatives of the Journeymen Plumbers Local Union every year for no reason.
In 1961, Mayor Richard J. Daley was looking for ways to help the city of Chicago prosper. One of the bigger problems he had to face was the Chicago River, which, at the time, was so polluted that one of its tributaries was mentioned in Upton Sinclair’s famous novel The Jungle. According to NPR, “The green dye was originally part of the city’s effort to clean up the river’s waterfront areas, which had long been a depository for Chicago’s waste.” Dyeing certain areas helped workers identify the sources of the waste.
According to the Chicagoist, the idea to use the dye for the river belonged to Stephen Bailey, friend of the mayor and manager of the Chicago Journeymen Plumbers Union (the group still responsible for the ceremony today). After noting the green color on the plumbers’ uniforms, Bailey pitched the idea to Daley. whose original idea was to use it on a portion of Lake Michigan. Eventually, the idea for the river was settled, and it became a tradition.
According to NPR, the original dye was oil-based, which caused many environmentalist groups to lobby for switching to a safer formula. Today, the dye used is a vegetable-based dye that appears bright orange until it hits the water. The exact recipe, however, is a closely guarded secret. In 2003, a parade organizer told the Columbia Chronicle That revealing the formula is like ”telling where the leprechaun hides its gold.”
The NPR article reveals that some environmental groups are still concerned about the dyeing of the river encouraging others to use less safe dyes for the same result. Regardless of what goes on outside of the city’s festivities, thousands gathered to watch the well-kept tradition that has deep roots in the history and culture of the city.
