An already established European tradition, Mardi Gras (French for Fat Tuesday) marked the day before Ash Wednesday ushered in a period of curtailment of food and drink during the 40 days of Lent prior to Easter Sunday. It was only fitting, therefore, that a French colony should honor this day. What better way than to imitate, in at least some small degree, the customs of their homeland?

It was not until years later, in 1830, that a wilder, more outlandish form of celebration was inaugurated. That year, not on Fat Tuesday but on New Year’s Day, a group calling themselves the Cowbellion de Rakin Society plundered a local hardware store, armed themselves with cowbells, rakes and hoes, then proceeded to march through the streets of Mobile. This "Mystic society" was the forerunner of the modern day Mardi Gras in Mobile.

Here the story takes a rather interesting turn. Like treasured sourdough starter, members of the Cowbellion de Rakin group carried their ideas and customs to New Orleans, and in 1857 assisted the good citizens of that fair city in setting up a mystic society of their own. That was the beginning of the famous Crewe of Comus Society: to this day it is the most prestigious one in New Orleans.

Annual festivities in Mobile continued until the Civil War when the hardship, uncertainty and stress of the war years brought a temporary halt to the celebrations. Even after the war, in the years Mobile was under Union occupation; the city was disillusioned and discouraged.

It was not until 1866 on Mardi Gras afternoon that a Mobile man, Joseph Stillwell Cain, decided to raise the spirits of his dejected city. Cain dressed up in full Chickasaw Indian regalia, climbed aboard a coal wagon he had decorated, and held a mule-powered one-float parade through the streets of Mobile, delighting young and old. With one simple gesture, Cain had single-handedly brought about the rebirth of Mardi Gras festivities in Mobile.

By the time Joseph S. Cain died at the age of 72, he had founded a number of mystic societies including the Order of Myths, a prominent modern-day order. On the stone marking Cain’s grave in Mobile's historic Church Street Cemetery, these words were carved in tribute to his restoring the city’s pride and heritage: Here lies Joe Cain, the heart and soul of Mardi Gras in Mobile.

Could it have been his high jinks and whimsical action that gave rise to the saying raising Cain? An interesting speculation or coincidence at best. In any event, on the Sunday before Mardi Gras, a special parade pays homage to Joe Cain’s memory. To some onlookers, this parade seems a tad livelier than all the rest of the parades rolling through the streets throughout the weeks prior to Fat Tuesday.

Each parade is sponsored by a different mystic society who try to out-do each other with elaborately decorated floats similar to the ones pictured on these pages. Queens and Kings and their respective attendants are chosen for each Mystic Order adding to the pomp and circumstance with ceremonies and splendid attire. And of course no well-turned-out parade would be worth noting without its marching bands and "maskers" on horseback!

Mary Dawson McCall, ASID kitchen designer for Redland Design in Montgomery, grew up in Mobile and has yet to miss a Mardi Gras season for the past 25 years in the city where it all began. These are her comments:

"Mardi Gras in Mobile is a magical and festive time of the year -- just before the Lenten season begins and spring arrives. It gives people of all ages a chance to cast worries aside and celebrate with family and friends by attending masked society balls and viewing colorful parades that light up cold February nights.

The Athelstan Club (seen in the background on the cover photo) is downtown on St. Francis Street across from Bienville Square. Growing up, we would gather with our friends during Mardi Gras to sit in the stands to watch the parades go by. Afterwards, we would go upstairs to the Athelstan Club to eat hot dogs and hamburgers. As we got older, we would stand up in the balcony, cocktails in hand, and observe the passing parades from our perch above the Mardi Gras crowds."

If you are one of the persons chosen to ride on a float, you will be expected to throw trinkets to the crowds thronging the streets and doorways along the parade route. Ropes of beads, Moon Pies, candy and shiny fake doubloons are greeted by the enthusiastic crowds with roars of approval and generous applause.

Whether or not you catch a prize from a moving float, you are sure to be dazzled by the sights, colors and sounds of Mardi Gras in Mobile... where the true spirit of the ancient festival is celebrated with a full measure of frivolity cloaked in pageantry and theatrical panache.