đ KNGT đ | Louisiana âOkay, everyone. Here comes the thing people argue about during Mardi Gras season. Who really started the first one in America? Was it Louisiana or Alabama? People from Louisiana often claim it first, but rarely stop to wonder otherwise. Beads float through New Orleans, followed by music and crowds. Parades come alive with color, yet something else lingers beneath the surface. You see king cake popping up in cafes and homes too. Still, that doesnât wrap things up neatly.
Who held the First Mardi Gras Celebration?
According to NewOrleansMardiGras.comâŚNew Orleans is not where Mardi Gras began. Mobile holds that honor. True story. Alabama. I know this sounds funny, but hear me out, I did some research.
Some Mardi Gras traces back to medieval Europe. From Rome through Venice then into France, feasts marked turning points. The royal Bourbon family of France carried such customs far beyond courts. Among them stood Boeuf Gras, not just a term, but a name given to a young calf raised fat and ready. A grand finale, thatâs what it came down to, just ahead of Lentâs beginninâ.
That evening in early spring, March 2nd, 1699 feels like a quiet moment until ships appear just off the southern edge of what has now become New Orleans. About 60 miles from the gulf, Jean Baptiste Le Moyne Sieur de Bienville guided his crew through the swamp. With the next day staring Lent, he stop at an opening in the trees, and this is where it started. They called it Pointe du Mardi Gras, because feasting begins here just before fasting takes hold with the start of Lent.
Move up a few years to around 1702, Bienville started a post called Fort Louis de la Louisiane. Over time it turned into what we now call Mobile. After that things led up to something major happening…