32nd Annual Irish Spring Festival

True Irish Magic engulfs the tiny village of Ireland, West Virginia - from the gentle curve of the West Fork River to the majestic mountain peaks which encircle Ireland in a loving embrace. Magic is everywhere one looks.

The community of Ireland is located in the southern end of Lewis County. There you will find many people with Irish names, an organization called SHAMROCK COMMUNITY EDUCATIONAL OUTREACH SERVICES CLUB, and an annual deluge of cards and letters to be postmarked "Ireland" for St. Patrick's Day. And so it has been for several decades. But it was not until the winter of 1981 that some community members were finally overcome by their curiosity as to the origin of the small hamlet's name.

A research effort by the SHAMROCK E.H. CLUB, now the Shamrock CEOS club, was launched to discover more about community roots. Their research confirmed information already discovered by former resident Cly Reger about the village's history.

It was found that the area had been settled by an Irishman named Andrew Wilson. In later years, the man became affectionately known as "Old

Ireland" to the settlers of that area. More in depth research led to the discovery that "Old Ireland" had lived to enjoy 114 spring times. The average life-span at that time was approximately 38 years.

When community members heard of the discovery, they were convinced there was something unique about the quality of life in Ireland, West Virginia that was conducive to long life spans. A coupling of this newfound reason for excitement, along with the already established perennial desire to celebrate the vernal equinox led to the first planned IRISH SPRING FESTIVAL.

For obvious reasons, it was decided to wear the green and celebrate spring , including March 17th and the first day of spring. The SHAMROCK CEOS

CLUB organizes the annual event.

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