Carnival  

In the 1930s, J'Ouvert, the dawn of Carnival Monday, was replete with "old mas," i.e., masqueraders dressed up as: ghosts; babies complete with diapers; yard-sweepers; devils with their bodies painted blue; or jab molassies, with their bodies covered with molasses. By midday on Carnival Monday, bats and midnight robbers would appear on the streets while most large bands presented a preview of their Carnival Tuesday presentations. Beginning with this decade, historical presentations became the norm on Carnival Tuesday. In 1932, the main judging point was the Queen's Park Savannah where masqueraders competed in 19 categories, including "Best-Decorated Bicycle," and the top overall prize was $60.

In this first decade following the end of World War II, the interest in celebrating Carnival grew by leaps and bounds. The citizens began to put more effort into the planning of the celebration and events became more spectacular. Bands sprung up all over the island as the citizens took advantage of the liberty to dance and drink alcohol while parading in the streets on the Monday and Tuesday before Ash Wednesday, the start of lent. Up to the late-1960s, all music associated with Carnival was banned from radio stations during the entire lenten season, and public dances were almost unheard of during this period. This abstinence was a direct result of the heavy christian influence on the country. A summary of the Large Band-of-the-Year winners over 64 years of competition from 1955 to 2018 is listed below. (The 2003 results were declared null and void by the High Court of Trinidad & Tobago):