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Mobile Carnival poster from 1900. Floats lining up for an Order of Inca parade in 2007. Mardi Gras is the annual Carnival celebration in Mobile, Alabama.It is the oldest official Carnival celebration in the United States, started by Frenchman Nicholas Langlois in 1703 when Mobile was the capital of Louisiana. Carnival, American Style: Mardi Gras at Mobile and New Orleans. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1990. "Mardi Gras in Mobile: Excerpts from the 1908 Diary of Young Visitor, Senta Jones." Gulf Coast Historical Review 11 (Spring 1996): 69-76. Mardi Gras Vertical Files, Mobile Public Library Local History and Genealogy Section, Mobile, Alabama. Although The Big Easy in Louisiana is perhaps best-known for its Mardi Gras revelry, the port city of Mobile, Alabama, founded in 1702 by French settlers, lays claim to being the city that first Experience: Carnival, the extended Mardi Gras season, is Mobile, Alabama’s, greatest living tradition. First introduced to the United States in Mobile by the French in the early 18 th Century, Mobile is the original home to Mardi Gras in the US. The celebrations are increasing grander and more diverse with each passing year. While Mardi Gras is commonly intertwined with New Orleans, the true history of where the celebrations started lay in Mobile, AL, around 1703, making it an over 300-year-old tradition. Whether you live around Daphne, Fairhope, or other Alabama communities, the Mardi Gras tradition remains alive and well near Spanish Fort, AL. Before New Orleans, there was Mobile, Alabama — the birthplace of Mardi Gras in America. Mobile, founded by Roman Catholics from France in 1702, was home to the first mystic society, or "krewe Start your Mardi Gras adventure in Mobile at the Mobile Carnival Museum. The Mobile Carnival Museum highlights the history of Mardi Gras in its true birthplace - Mobile, Alabama. The museum features 14 galleries, video presentations, a pictorial hallway and an interactive float area - all in a restored historic mansion. History of Mardi Gras In 1703, Mobile, Alabama was the first city recorded to have the oldest organized Mardi Gras in the U.S., according to Curious Cuisiniere. "The first documented celebration of modern-day carnival, what people think of as carnival in the United States is historically without a doubt began in Mobile. Related Reading: History of the Mardi Gras King Cake. Fun Facts About Mardi Gras in Mobile . 1. The celebration’s traditional motif is green, purple, and gold. Gold and purple have always been the colors of Mardi Gras in Mobile. Purple has long been associated with European royal dynasties. It is also the liturgical color of Lent in Christianity. But did you know that the country’s first Mardi Gras celebration was held not in the Crescent City, but 125 miles east, in Mobile, Alabama? It’s true, and there’s more: snack-lovers who get there in time for the parades can seriously rack up on free MoonPies. Here’s the backstory: In 1703, Mobile was the capital of French Louisiana. Segregation in Mobile’s Mardi Gras . Parts of Mobile’s Mardi Gras celebrations continue to have long-standing customs that date back to the days of segregation. (We have no written or direct knowledge of this other than what we can see and experience as observers). The Mobile Area Mardi Gras Association (formerly named the Colored Carnival Originated in 1703, Mobile is THE birthplace of America's original Mardi Gras. Joe Cain is the man. He brought Mardi Gras back to life after the Civil War by leading an impromptu parade down the streets of Mobile and we've been doing it ever since. He has a whole day dedicated to him during It’s a part of its history. Mardi Gras first kicked off in Alabama, all thanks to some adventurous French explorers led by a guy named Pierre Le Moyne d’Iberville. Back in 1699, Pierre scribbled down in his journal about the first-ever Mardi Gras shindig in Mobile. An organization that educates while letting the good times roll is the Mobile Area Mardi Gras Association (MAMGA). Founded in 1938, this esteemed society has played a pivotal role in shaping and preserving the cultural richness of Mobile's Mardi Gras traditions. For the uninitiated, attending Mardi Gras in Mobile, Alabama, can be a little like drinking from a fire hose—and in this case, that hose is pumped with 300 years of history and more eccentric traditions than you can count. Even talking about Mardi Gras here requires a new vocabulary. For a modern twist on Southern fare, visit The Noble South in Mobile, AL, where locally sourced ingredients shine in every dish. Listen to the Sounds of Mobile. Music is woven into the very fabric of Mobile. The city’s musical history is as rich as its food, from the brass bands of Mardi Gras parades to the soulful rhythms of jazz and blues. The history of Mardi Gras in Mobile is as rich and as longstanding as that of the city itself. Rooted deep in the culture of French colonists who founded Mobile in 1702, the city’s first Mardi Gras celebration was held that following year and has become an annual staple and draw for the Port City. Mardi Gras is a Christian holiday and popular cultural phenomenon that dates back thousands of years to pagan spring and fertility rites. (Some argue the port city of Mobile, Alabama was Mardi Gras in Mobile, Alabama, is one of the country’s oldest celebrations. It dates back to 1703, when the city was founded by French settlers. Over the centuries, the celebration has evolved into a city-wide festival and parade tradition. Mobile, Alabama is the mother of mystics, the original birthplace of Mardi Gras as we know it! Each year, the city and its surrounding communities come together for weeks of parades, masked balls, MoonPies and merry-making leading up to Fat Tuesday, a season that is collectively known as Mardi Gras.
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