Although today New Orleans is practically synonymous with Mardi Gras in the U.S., the celebration began in Mobile, Alabama, where the first Mardi Gras was celebrated in 1703—not the Crescent City.

Among the women honored is Aminthe Laudumiey Nungesser, a trailblazer in Mardi Gras history. She founded the Krewe of Iris in 1917 and the Krewe of Venus, the first parading women’s organization, in ...