Pittsburgh's biggest Celtic gathering is set to take over the Carrie Blast Furnaces National Historic Landmark the weekend after Labor Day, bringing music, dance, traditional food, and a brand-new stone circle to the 35th annual Pittsburgh Irish Festival. The three-day event runs September 11 through 13 and is organized by Pittsburgh Irish Festival, Inc., a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that promotes awareness of Irish history and culture across the region.
The festival, which typically draws an estimated 20,000 to 25,000 attendees each year according to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, has settled into its current home at the Carrie Blast Furnaces since 2022 after years of disruption. As reported by WPXI, this year's lineup features music, dance, historical exhibits, children's activities, and traditional Irish food, alongside several new additions including the festival's first-ever Irish trivia competition.
Severe flooding at the festival's former Sandcastle Riverplex site wiped out the event's final day in September 2018, according to the Rivers of Steel-affiliated Post-Gazette account of the move, forcing organizers into temporary parking-lot events before the permanent relocation to Carrie Furnaces. That flooding loss proved costly enough to push organizers away from the flood-prone riverside park entirely. The industrial site's connection to Irish immigrant labor makes the venue choice more than practical — the Carrie Blast Furnaces historically employed many workers of Irish descent, per the seed report's account of the festival.
New Attractions Join Returning Favorites
This year introduces a new stone circle to the Stone Circle Strongman area, where visitors can pay a $10 donation to attempt lifting the McClurg Manhood Stones — a collection of natural lifting stones weighing a combined 3,106 pounds, according to Stone Circle Strongman, the Verona-based organization that manages the stones. The area also includes a King of the Stones competition, where competitors vie for cash prizes and a shot at qualifying for the pro division of America's Strongest Stonelifter in Vista, California, according to WPXI's reporting on the event.
The first-ever Irish trivia competition is presented in partnership with Ya Jagoff! Media, while local professional and youth teams will host traditional Gaelic sports demonstrations, giving festival attendees a chance to learn about hurling, camogie, and Gaelic football. Leprechaun's Landing, presented by Shady Lane School, returns with mini golf, bounce houses, and craft projects for younger attendees.
Wellness, Whiskey, and a Genealogy Deep Dive
The Celtic Wellness section runs all three days of the festival, featuring meditation, labyrinth walks, and drum circles, including sessions hosted by the Pittsburgh Women's Wellness Drum Circle. The lineup also includes Wyda Yoga, a movement practice rooted in Celtic druid tradition. Cultural beverage tastings led by whiskey and brewing experts are available to attendees 21 and older, while the Steeltown Acoustic Instruments Experience offers interactive sessions focused on Celtic instrumentation.
For those tracing their roots, the Genealogy Pavilion provides reference materials and local search assistance for attendees researching Irish ancestry, including guidance for those looking into family members who worked at the Carrie Furnaces. That focus lines up with regional demographics: 2024 U.S. Census Bureau data reported by Axios found that more than 413,000 people in the Pittsburgh metro area report Irish ancestry, nearly 17% of the regional population.
Food, Faith, and a Festival Marketplace
The Festival Marketplace hosts more than 50 specialty vendor booths offering Irish sausage, boxty pancakes, shepherd's pie, corned beef and cabbage, and fish and chips. A Taste of Ireland partners with the Irish Design Center, and a traditional Irish breakfast will be served on September 13 from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., though it requires advance online registration. An Irish Mass is scheduled for 10 a.m. that same day at the Celtic Spirit Stage.
A floral arrangement workshop hosted by Essers Floral will take place at the Five Farms Celtic Kitchen, letting participants repurpose Irish cream bottles into arrangements. The Irish Dog Area returns as well, featuring native Irish breeds including Irish setters, Irish wolfhounds, Irish terriers, and soft-coated wheaten terriers. The Cultural Hedge School Stage, modeled after Ireland's penal law-era secret schools, rounds out the festival's historical programming, and Pittsburgh Irish Festival, Inc. continues to support year-round educational efforts through its Irish Education Outreach Program.
A Landmark With Its Own Iron Legacy
Carrie Blast Furnaces No. 6 and No. 7 were constructed in 1907 and remained in operation until being taken offline in 1978, representing pre-World War II iron-making technology, according to the U.S. Department of the Interior's designation of the site. Rivers of Steel will conduct mini tours of the furnaces during the festival, giving attendees a look at a site the National Park Service says covers 135 acres across Swissvale and Rankin boroughs.
Iron manufactured at the furnaces was converted into steel at Carnegie's Homestead Steel Works and used in major national infrastructure, including the Panama Canal lock gates, the Empire State Building, and the Golden Gate Bridge, according to The Allegheny Front. Rivers of Steel is also currently preserving the site's 48-inch Universal Plate Mill, the only surviving steam-powered rolling mill in the world, per the organization's own account of its preservation work.
Running the three-day festival takes a substantial volunteer effort — an operational workforce of roughly 300 people who travel in from across Pennsylvania as well as states including Ohio, Florida, and North Carolina, according to TribLIVE. Discounted advance tickets are available online ahead of the September 11-13 weekend at the Carrie Blast Furnaces National Historic Landmark.
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