Joe Cain

October 10, 1832 - April 17, 1904

Photographed by Mark Hilton, July 25, 2015

1. Joe Cain Marker

Inscription. Joseph Stillwell Cain, Jr. was born along Dauphin Street in Mobile, Alabama. Joe served as a clerk for the city, and developed many mystic societies within the city. The Civil War brought all Mardi Gras Festivities to a halt. Cain had participated in Mardi Gras parades in New Orleans, Louisiana in 1865, and returned to Mobile determined to revive the celebration. In 1866, while under Union occupation, Joe Cain paraded through the streets of Mobile, dressed in a costume as a fictional Chickasaw Chief named Slacabamorinico. The following year Joe was joined by others, parading in a decorated coal wagon, playing drums and horns. The Sunday before Fat Tuesday, Joe Cain Day is celebrated as part of the scheduled Mardi Gras celebrations in Mobile. This has been called "The People's Parade" because it is performed by citizens without being run by a specific Mardi Gras krewe. The parade is preceded with the visit of the "Cain's Merry Widows" to the gravesite of their "departed husband". Each Mardi Gras on Joe Cain Day, members of this society dress in funeral black with veils, lay a wreath at Cain's burial site In Church Street

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Graveyard to wail over their departed husband's grave, then to Joe Cain's house on Augusta Street to offer a toast and eulogy to their "beloved Joe" continuously arguing over which widow was his favorite. Joe Cain built a tradition of Mardi Gras parades and is largely credited with the rebirth of Mardi Gras celebrations in Mobile, Alabama.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Entertainment • War, US Civil. A significant historical year for this entry is 1865.

Location. Marker has been permanently removed. It was located near 30° 41.588′ N, 88° 2.466′ W. Marker was in Mobile, Alabama, in Mobile County. It was at the intersection of North Royal Street and St Francis Street, on the right when traveling north on North Royal Street. Touch for map. Marker was at or near this postal address: 26 North Royal Street, Mobile AL 36602, United States of America.

We have been informed that this marker is no longer there and will not be replaced. This page is an archival view of what was.

Regionally, this marker was on Alabama’s Gulf Coast

and in the Mobile Bay area.

It was also in the American South,

specifically

Photographed by Sandra Hughes Tidwell, October 5, 2023

2. Joe Cain Marker

New photo with new text

in the Deep South,

and on the Gulf Coast.

Globally, it was in North America,

a Gulf of Mexico state,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it found itself in what was once New Spain,

the Viceroyalty of New France,

the territory of the Mississippian Culture,

one of the Confederate States of America,

and the Antebellum South.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this location: A different marker also named Joe Cain (here, next to this marker); John Forbes & Co. (within shouting distance of this marker); Merchants National Bank Building (about 300 feet away, measured in a direct line); Site of Sixth Mobile Theatre (about 300 feet away); Mobile City Limits (about 300 feet away); Bienville Square (about 400 feet away); In Memory of the Battle of Mobile Bay (about 500 feet away); Old Slave Markets (about 700 feet away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Mobile.

Also see . . .
1. Joe Cain. Wikipedia entry (Submitted on August 5, 2015, by Mark Hilton of Montgomery, Alabama.)

2. Joe Cain. Encyclopedia of Alabama article

Joe Cain Café image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Mark Hilton, July 25, 2015

3. Joe Cain Café

(Submitted on August 5, 2015, by Mark Hilton of Montgomery, Alabama.)

3. Cain's Merry Widows. Encyclopedia of Alabama entry (Submitted on December 20, 2020, by Larry Gertner of New York, New York.)

Joe Cain Café menu. image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Mark Hilton, July 25, 2015

4. Joe Cain Café menu.

Joe Cain as "Slacabamorinico" image. Click for full size.

Public Domain

5. Joe Cain as "Slacabamorinico"

Credits. This page was last revised on November 10, 2023. It was originally submitted on August 5, 2015, by Mark Hilton of Montgomery, Alabama. This page has been viewed 1,602 times since then and 130 times this year. Photos: 1. submitted on August 5, 2015, by Mark Hilton of Montgomery, Alabama. 2. submitted on November 10, 2023, by Sandra Hughes Tidwell of Killen, Alabama, USA. 3, 4, 5. submitted on August 5, 2015, by Mark Hilton of Montgomery, Alabama.