Evacuation Day (Massachusetts)
Evacuation Day is a holiday observed on March 17 in Suffolk County, Massachusetts (which includes the cities of Boston, Chelsea, and Revere, and the town of Winthrop)[1] and also by the public schools in Somerville, Massachusetts.[2] The holiday commemorates the evacuation of British forces from the city of Boston following the siege of Boston, early in the American Revolutionary War. Schools and government offices are closed. If March 17 falls on a weekend, schools and government offices are closed on the following Monday in observance. It is the same day as Saint Patrick's Day, a coincidence that played a role in the establishment of the holiday.[3]
Evacuation Day
Suffolk County, Massachusetts and some state offices located there
Somerville, Massachusetts public schools
Commemoration ceremony at Dorchester Heights
Saint Patrick's Day festivities
17 March 2025
annual
Moves to eliminate holiday[edit]
In 2010, the state legislature debated eliminating Evacuation Day and Bunker Hill Day as official holidays, citing the expense of giving state and local workers paid days off.[7] The state's 2011 budget required all state and municipal offices in Suffolk County to be open on both days.[8]