For History Buffs Only . . .
Cascarones
enliven Sesquicentennial events | Bells
Mark Historic Road, Sites
Cascarones enliven
Sesquicentennial events
“This being the last night of the carnival, every one has broken
his last egg-shells. But few of them contained cologne or lavender; nearly
all were filled with golden tinsel. Ladies and gentlemen too are covered
with the sparkling shower, and the lights of the chandeliers are thrown
back in millions of mimic rays...” – Walter Colton, 1847
CRACK! The
eggshell is shattered over your head, and a sudden shower of confetti is
caught in your hair. Laughter fills the air and the dance goes on...
A
scene similar to the one described by Monterey’s Alcalde, Walter Colton,
about a party at Thomas O. Larkin’s house in 1847 will grace the streets
of Monterey this October.
Cascarones are eggshells filled with
confetti or cologne that were broken “upon the heads of the opposite sex”
during festive dances that enlivened many parties of 19th-century
California. William Heath Davis, writing of his life during the infancy of
the State, suggested that Cascarones, a pre-Lenten Carnival custom, had
originated in Spain and Mexico.
In keeping with tradition, cascarones
will be a part of this year’s Sesquicentennial festivities. The Monterey
Civic Club has volunteered to transform many eggshells into cascarones for
the Fandango, a public street dance, to be held on Oct. 13 in front of
Colton Hall. The Fandango was a popular dance in the 1840s and 50s.
You too can be a part of the Sesquicentennial preparations. When you
make scrambled eggs, omelets or even bake cakes or cookies, please blow
out the eggs instead of cracking them. Then rinse them well and deliver
the eggshells intact, preferably in their cartons, to our Volunteer
Coordinator at the Personnel Dept., 399 Pacific Street. Call 646.3719 for
more information.
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Road, Sites
Three new El Camino Real bells now mark the original site of the Spanish Presidio of Monterey that once
sat on “the King’s Highway.”
El Camino Real once connected 21
missions, three pueblos and four presidios – including the one in
Monterey.
Early this century, the California Federation of Women’s
Clubs (CFWC) placed 450 bells along the 700-mile route that ran from San
Diego to Sonoma. CFWC, which provided the bells to the City, continues to
add and relocate bells.
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