Casimir Pulaski Day is a decidedly American holiday, celebrated by Polonia usually on the first Monday in March. The holiday really doesn't exist in Poland because it's based on Pulaski's derring-do during the American Revolutionary War. And it's not celebrated in March across the nation (the legal holiday honoring Pulaski is on Oct. 11, see below).

In U.S. Polonia, there are around 10 million Americans of Polish descent, with 1 million in Chicago alone (the second-largest Polish population outside of Warsaw, Poland).


Pittsburgh, Philadelphia, Cleveland, Detroit, Buffalo, N.Y., Brooklyn, N.Y., New York, N.Y. (largest Polish population outside of Warsaw, Poland), Wallington, N.J. ("Poland on the Passaic River"), Milwaukee, Baltimore and New Britain, Conn., also have large contingents of Poles. Arizona, California and Florida are becoming the latest areas of Polish concentration as Baby Boomers are retiring to warmer temperatures.

The holiday celebrates Revolutionary War cavalry officer born in Poland, Count Casimir (Kazimierz) Pulaski, known as the father of the American cavalry, for his contribution to fighting for the independence of the fledgling U.S. nation during the American Revolutionary War.

Pulaski was introduced to Benjamin Franklin in Paris who recommended highly him to General George Washington. Pulaski arrived in the United States in July 1777 and joined the Continental Army where he esteemed himself.

Pulaski Day is a city-based holiday not to be confused with General Pulaski Memorial Day, a national U.S.

holiday celebrated on Oct. 11 to commemorate his death from wounds suffered at the Siege of Savannah on Oct. 9, 1779.

Pulaski Day is a legal holiday in the state of Illinois, that came about as an aexpression of Polish-American pride in the 1970s or 1980s. It's held on the first Monday of each March. Public schools, libraries and government offices in the city of Chicago and Cook County close. In November 2009, President Barack Obama signed a resolution to make Pulaski an honorary U.S. citizen 230 years after the war hero died in battle.

During Casimir Pulaski Day, parades are the order of the day with Chicago seeming to have one of the largest. It's a good time to get in touch with your Polish heritage by celebrating with some of Poland's fine cuisine.

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