Hoboken's St. Ann's Italian Festival: Photos From Day 1

HOBOKEN, NJ — People must have really missed Hoboken's traditional St. Ann's Italian Festival after it was canceled last year, because the first few nights of the 111-year-old event were packed.

Thursday night, people played games of chance, ate, drank, and waited on a long line for the popular zeppole, the fried Italian dessert.

There was also music and lots of other food, particularly sweet-smelling Italian sausage with peppers and onions.

See photos below, as well as the festival schedule through Monday.

The Feast ends with a traditional procession in which a 600-pound statue of St. Ann, the patron saint of women and fertility, is carried through the streets of Hoboken.

The festival is centered at Seventh and Jefferson streets.

Photos From Night 1

The Italian festival is popular enough that it has been mentioned in national travel guides and was visited by Frank Sinatra with Pres. Ronald Reagan in 1984 during Reagan's re-election campaign. (You can watch Reagan's remarks in this video or read a transcript and see a photo here.)

This Year, These Are The Hours:

Thursday and Friday: 6 p.m. to 11 p.m.
Saturday and Sunday: 1 p.m. to 11 p.m.
Monday (Feast Day): Mass and procession starting at 11 a.m., festival 1 p.m. to 11 p.m. (More below)

Event Schedule For Monday (Last Day):

St. Ann's Church gave these details for the Mass and procession Monday morning, on the last day of the festival:

• Solemnity of Saint Ann Feast Day Mass is Monday July 26 at 11 a.m. Doors open at 10 a.m.
• Procession into Church begins at 10:30 a.m.
• "Following the Mass is the traditional procession through Hoboken with the statue of our Patroness St Ann. The St Ann Feast Day mass will also be streaming live on the Saint Ann YouTube channel."
• After those events, the festival runs from 1 p.m. to 11 p.m.

Here Are More Details:

Hours and how to get involved, on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/p/CR...

The church's webpage gives details of services: www.StAnnHoboken.com/feast

Less frequently updated is the Facebook page.

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