Eugenia Duke

A woman sitting at a desk writing something in a book.

Eugenia Duke. Image from NPR.

(1881-1968) If you go to any supermarket, you will see the yellow and white Duke Mayonnaise jar. You may not know that Eugenia Duke created this delicious condiment in Greenville, South Carolina, in 1917. Eugenia Duke was a businesswoman who, with her daughter, Martha, began selling sandwiches at YMCA-run Army canteens to make money for her family. Due to her mayonnaise's popularity, she sold it to C.F. Sauer Company in 1929. The company continues to make Duke's Real Mayonnaise in Mauldin, South Carolina, and it has been enjoyed nationally and internationally.