Ruthie the Duck Lady

 Ruth Grace Moulon, known as Ruthie the Duck Lady, was an American woman who was a notable figure in the French Quarter of New Orleans. She was often seen riding from bar to bar on roller skates wearing eccentric furs, drinking Budweiser and smoking Kool cigarettes while accompanied by a couple of ducks.

A New Orleans native, she was born Ruth Grace Moulon on Jan. 19, 1934. 

As a child, she and her brother raised ducks in their family’s Royal Street apartment. The ducks would follow young Ruthie everywhere, and her family began promoting her as “the Duck Girl” and charging people to take photos with her, as well as selling picture postcards of her image. Ruthie became a French Quarter fixture from the 1950s through the 1990s and was known for her moodiness, either speaking sweetly to passersby or mightily cursing them. She’d hit up friends and strangers for Budweiser beer (“for her duck”) and Kool cigarettes (“for later”).

Ruthie became the subject of documentaries and a musical portrait as well as various newspaper articles. Ruthie died on Sept. 6, 2008. She was 74.

God Bless You, Ruthie!