St. Mary Parish’s oldest & most prestigious carnival organization

About Us

tradition

Hephaestus has a rich heritage, dating from 1914, of outstanding royalty, innovative themes and gorgeous court and ball presentations. Traditional Mardi Gras day parade route is shown to the right, starting at 2:00 pm.

History

Mardi Gras began in Morgan City in 1914 with the first king and queen being Joseph Dyer and Mrs. Leta Prohaska Miller. For many years there was no formal celebration, and in 1927, more formal celebrations began again, with sponsorship of the Morgan City Parent-Teacher organization using the name Cervus. In 1961 the Ladies’ Fire Auxiliary instituted their own krewe with a court and ball, under the name Krewe, Hephaestus, the god of fire and metal working. For six years, there were two kings and two queens with each group having their own court and ball, until 1966 when the groups merged. When they asked Lee Vaccari to serve as king in 1969, he decided that the Krewe of Hephaestus should be a formal organization with a membership and a kings’ club and queens’ club. He reinstituted Mardi Gras parades and included all former kings and queens as part of the history and membership of Hephaestus. The Krewe celebrates its anniversary date as 1961 when the Ladies began Hephaestus. This year we are celebrating our 62nd year. Kings and Queens are known by their anniversary date. King and Queen Hephaestus LIXII (62) will reign this year.

Membership

A few of the many advantages of Hephaestus membership are:

Hephaestus is for both spouses, or for singles and his or her guest.

Hephaestus is the carnival organization in our area having its ball the Saturday evening before, and its parade on, Mardi Gras.

Hephaestus has an ownership interest in its floats, and its Mardi Gras parades are outstanding and fun for all who participate.

Hephaestus membership dues are very reasonable and entitle its members to exciting annual functions including the ball, before-and-after parade parties, parade riding and other Krewe events.

LXIII Court

2023 Court and Ball

Dr. Eric Melancon and Anna Armato reigned over the royal court of Morgan City’s oldest krewe as King and Queen Hephaestus LXIII on Feb. 18 at the Morgan City Municipal Auditorium.

The 2023 Krewe Captain Michael Vining led the ball, whose theme was “Hephaestus Grand Soiree.”

The dukes and maids represented various parties known to our culture as follows: “Southern Garden Party,” Carl Hebert and Ryan Catherine Caldwell, daughter of Greg and Stacey Caldwell; “Hawaiian Luau,” Drew Mallinckrodt and Gweneth Dohmann, daughter of Joey and Sharon Dohmann; “High Tea Party,” Jason Knope and Anna LeLeux, daughter of Jeff and Angelique LeLeux; “New Years Eve,” Briant Dozar and Ella Hover, daughter of Gary and Lisa Hover and Ryan and Shannon Bianchini; “Fiesta,” Brannon Melancon and Dru Fraley, daughter of Jeremy and Annette Fraley; and “Jazz Brunch,” Garret LeBlanc and Lucy Hamer, daughter of Gregory and Shannon Hamer.

Pages to the king were William Montgomery, son of William and Julie Ann Montgomery; and Miller Fuhrer, son of Mallory Johnson Fuhrer and Cory Fuhrer.

The queen's pages were Alex Marie Waguespack, daughter of Jonathan and Tiffany Waguespack; and Marie-Elise Matherne, daughter of Jeffrey and Courtney Matherne.

Adeline Josephine Dohmann, daughter of Joey and Sharon Dohmann, was the gift bearer.

Court heralds were Beckett Minton and Fletcher Minton, sons of Coby and Caitlyn Minton.

Dwayne Aucoin, Gary Hover, John B. Hover and Cooper LeBlanc were knights of Hephaestus.

Melancon was born and raised in south Louisiana and resides in Patterson. He has been married for 27 years to Karen Smith Melancon, of Baton Rouge. They have a son and daughter-in-law, Brannon and Danielle Melancon, of Centerville; and a daughter, Mary Jordan Melancon.

The king graduated from Hahnville High School and LSU, completing his education at LSU Medical School in New Orleans. He serves as a primary care physician/owner of Tiger Island Medical Clinic and is St. Mary Parish's coroner. He has been a member of the Krewe of Hephaestus since 2012, previously serving as a duke.

Armato is the daughter of John and Nicol Armato. She is a 2018 graduate of Berwick High School and a 2022 magna cum laude graduate of LSU in accounting.

While at LSU, Armato volunteered for Habitat for Humanity and The Painted Turtle Camp and was a member of Phi Eta Sigma National Honor Society, Delta Zeta and Society of Louisiana Certified Public Accountants. She works at Darnall Sikes in Morgan City and is also studying for the CPA exam. Her long-term goal is to work at Darnall Sikes of Lafayette after she passes the exam.

Entertainment for the court was provided by Dance World. Following the ball, a royal breakfast was served to guests.

Miss Anna Armato, Queen LXII

Krewe of Hephaestus