Masons . Mardi Gras. The Secret Origins of The Mystic Krewes

Masons and Mardi Gras reveals how the mysterious rituals and symbols of the Freemasons transformed Mardi Gras into an American festival. The first secretive parading fraternity in America was formed in Mobile, Alabama with parades on New Year& 39;s Eve. In New Orleans the Krewe of Comus took from Mobile the combination of the ritual-oriented fraternity with the& 34;& 34;mystic& 34;& 34; parade and they presented it on Fat Tuesday, or& 34;Mardi Gras.& 34; The parades of New Orleans and Mobile were acclaimed for their opulence and extravagance. It was a form of public entertainment that overwhelmed the senses like no other at the time. But it was not the Mardi Gras that the Creoles of New Orleans were accustomed to. As Yankee cotton brokers flooded into the ports of the Deep South in the early 1800& 39;s, the traditions they brought with them became the new American Mardi Gras.