Our History

The spirit of King Scott and Queen Rosalie is older than this historic spot the Mississippi Gulf Coast now calls Long Beach. The spirit of carnival revelry and charity is even older than this part of the New World of America.

Throughout the history of Europe there is evidence of the celebration of Mardi Gras, which became permanently wedded to the three days preceding Ash Wednesday around 600 AD. when Pope Gregory produced our present calendar. On Mardi Gras Day, 1699, the French explorer Iberville camped near the mouth of the Mississippi River and named the site "Point Mardi Gras", but the festival was not actually introduced in the new world until shortly after New Orleans was settled in 1718.Long Beach did not have its first official Mardi Gras celebration until 1961, although the spirit of the season was always present in the area. The preceding year, a small group of mothers of children attending St. Thomas Elementary School recognized a need for a source of continuing funds to finance the betterment of the quality of education for their children, and undertook the task of sponsoring an annual Carnival Ball to coincide with Mardi Gras Season. A contest was held to set a standard name for the King and Queen of Carnival, and Miss Mary Boggs submitted the names of Scott and Rosalie because the Long Beach Community was first known as Scott's Station and Rosalie. Miss Boggs had come up with a winner. By 1964 the small club of ladies had generated so much interest that it had become a community affair, and the name was changed from the St. Thomas Mother's Club to Carnival Association of Long Beach, and by 1979 the organization had spread coast-wide and became incorporated by obtaining chartered status as legitimate tax-exempt charitable organization. 

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The first CALB parade rolled through the streets of Long Beach in 1971 with the participants tossing doubloons made of wood, which are now considered among the most sought-after of collectibles, as have the .999 silver doubloons minted each year in a limited quantity. In 1981 a limited edition green doubloon was introduced, to be thrown only by Royalty, and each year since then the colors in the limited editions have been red, purple, blue, and gold. The doubloons traditionally bear the official crest of the Carnival Association on one side and the current year's theme on the other.

Now, unselfish men and women of all faiths and professions join together for the common benefit of worth-while charities in the coast area as well as St. Vincent de Paul School (formerly St. Thomas School.) Through their efforts over a million dollars have been donated to countless charities such as The Special Olympics, d 'Epee Deaf Center, South MS Regional Center, North MS Regional Burn Center, Harrison County Heart Association, Senior Citizens, Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, St. Jude's Hospital, and many others.

During this Carnival Season we drop our cares of the 21st Century and escape into a world of fantasy, and the tradition of fun-loving King Scott and the ageless, beautiful Queen Rosalie continues –

LONG LIVE KING SCOTT AND QUEEN ROSALIE!!