Tag Archives: the Greasy Pole
Saying ‘goodnight’ to St. Peter
The 2023 St. Peter’s Fiesta concluded late Sunday night with a raucous procession around the waterfront Fort neighborhood where the working-class Sicilian and Italian fishing community first started Fiesta in 1927. About 1,000 people took a loop around the Fort before the statue of St. Peter was returned to St. Peter’s Club and its place of honor in a window looking out onto Rogers Street. Older residents, many young adults and a dad carrying his young daughter on his shoulders marched along and cried “Viva!” Video, photos, >click to watch< 10:58
Fiesta: ‘What we are all about’
After a couple of days of carnival rides and musical entertainment, and a day of competition among seine boat crews and Greasy Pole walkers, America’s oldest seaport in its 400th year gathered in St. Peter’s Square on Friday night to officially kickoff the 96th St. Peter’s Fiesta. The celebration by the city’s Italian-American fishing community in the Fort neighborhood dates to 1927 and is hosted by the St. Peter’s Fiesta Committee. It’s held each year on the weekend closest to the Feast Day of St. Peter. The committee’s president, Joe Novello, took to the massive outdoor altar that Novello, an electrician by trade, wired. In opening the weekend’s festivities, he spoke about the thousands who have gathered in the neighborhood over the years to celebrate Fiesta and shout “Viva San Pietro!” Photos, >click to read< 97:47
