Aminthe Laudumiey Nungesser · Courtesy Arthur Hardy Collection
Born in 1899 into a Creole family in New Orleans, Aminthe Laudumiey Nungesser was more than a mother of three with five grandchildren — she was a pioneer, a visionary, and a trailblazer who helped reshape the cultural landscape of her city.
In 1917, at just eighteen years old, she founded the Krewe of Iris — a bold statement at a time when women could not vote, drive, or even smoke in public. Her decision to carve out a place for women in the male-dominated world of Mardi Gras was revolutionary, igniting a movement that would grow in strength and influence over the decades. Today more than 10,000 women belong to women’s Mardi Gras krewes, and Iris stands as the largest krewe in all of Carnival, with nearly 4,000 members.
She never sought recognition or fame. But in the grand tapestry of Mardi Gras, her thread — woven with determination, love, and the indomitable spirit of New Orleans — is undeniably one of the strongest.