The Irish bona fides of the highest incorporated city in the United States are undeniable: During the 1880s silver mining boom, over 3,000 people born on the Emerald Isle called Leadville home—more than the town’s entire population today (which hovers around 2,600).

Here, five ways to celebrate and honor Cloud City’s Irish heritage this St. Patrick’s Day.

5280 March 2025
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1. St. Patrick’s Day Parade

Don your best green and gold attire and join this lively procession of Irish flags, floats, and bagpipe bands. All (including dogs) are invited to participate in the six-block march, which starts at 4 p.m. on March 17, down Leadville’s main drag. The festivities culminate at the 1879 Silver Dollar Saloon, where the Leadville Lions Club serves corned beef and cabbage ($10 to $15 a plate) to raise money for its causes.

Can’t make it in March? For the past 70 years, the town has hosted an identical second parade on the third Saturday of September, when milder temperatures tend to draw bigger crowds. (Christmas in July, meet St. Paddy’s in September.) 9th Street and Harrison Avenue

2. Irish Miners’ Memorial

A statue called Liam at the Irish Miners’ Memorial in Leadville
A statue called Liam at the Irish Miners’ Memorial. Photo courtesy of Kathleen Fitzsimmons

Holding a pickaxe and harp and facing Ireland, a three-year-old statue nicknamed “Liam” honors the 1,300 or so Irish immigrants buried in the paupers’ section of Evergreen Cemetery. Illuminated panels inscribed with the names of the dead surround the bronze figure, memorializing the harsh lives of those who toiled in the high-altitude mines. At Evergreen Cemetery, McWethy Drive and James Street

3. The Unearthed Exhibit

Leadville’s immigrant miners faced social scorn, low pay, and perilous working conditions while extracting the fortunes of millionaires such as Horace Tabor and Meyer Guggenheim. History Colorado’s ongoing Unearthed: Voices of Leadville’s Shanty Irish exhibition ($3; Wednesday through Sunday, 10 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.) at the Healy House Museum & Dexter Cabin documents and honors locals’ fight for better wages and increased safety measures, which sparked Colorado’s labor movement. 912 Harrison Ave.

4. Leadville Railroad’s St. Patrick’s Day Ride

Completed in 1884, the Leadville Railroad is the last remaining section of a narrow-gauge route that once ran 151 miles from Denver to Cloud City. Today it ferries passengers on a two-hour scenic journey through the San Isabel National Forest with views of Mt. Elbert and Mt. Massive. The St. Patrick’s Day–themed excursion ($83 per ticket; children three and under ride free) leaves the station at 1 p.m. and features gaily decorated cars, Guinness beer, and emerald-clad employees. Look for golden coins that can be redeemed for free drinks and small souvenirs hidden throughout the train. 326 E. Seventh St.

5. Leprechaun Lane at Ski Cooper

Photo courtesy of Emily Maddox

In an effort to put the “green” in green run, the resort decorates this slope with shamrocks, a pot of gold, and four-foot-tall leprechauns all winter long. On St. Paddy’s Day, a real-life bearded elf frolics on the terrain—but don’t chase him. The treasure (stickers and wristbands that read “I Skied Leprechaun Lane”) is in a mailbox at the top of the run. Afterward, refuel with a pint and a feast of fish and chips and Irish pot pie at on-mountain Katie O’Rourke’s, the highest-elevation Irish pub in North America. 232 County Road 29

Read More: First-Timer’s Guide: Leadville