Saint Patrick's Day in the United States County Division's St. Patrick's Day Parade has more than 130 entries and lasts more than 90 minutes as it snakes through downtown and the Old Market. Pearl River attracts a crowd of 100,000 people, making it the second largest parade in New York state behind the New York City Parade. The parade started in 1963. The St. Patrick Society sponsors a St. Patrick’s Day Parade and Party on March 17 of each year. The Parade participants march along the designated parade route through downtown Peoria. Awards are presented in the following parade categories: Business Entries, Family Entries, and Organizational Entries.
World Book Day (UK and Ireland) observed on 23 April - it was changed in the UK to avoid clashes with Easter school holidays and with St George's Day. Conversely, a separate event World Book Night organized by independent charity The Reading Agency is held on 23 April. The United Kingdom's own version of World Book Day began in 1998, launched by Prime Minister Tony Blair at the Globe Theatre in London. Several million schoolchildren in the UK were given a special £1 World Book Day Book Token (€1.50 in Ireland) which could be redeemed against any book in any UK bookshop. A specially created WBD