Carrie Munn
Carrie Munn (January 29, 1898 – February 1, 1984), born Caroline M. Neunder, was an American fashion designer.
Also recorded as Mrs. Orson Munn · Carrie Nunder · Carolyn Nunder · Carolyn Nunder Munn
Carrie Munn
Life, October 22, 1951 · Public domain
- Name
- Carrie Munn
- Birth Name
- Caroline Neunder
- Born
- January 29, 1898
- Birthplace
- Buffalo, New York
- Died
- February 1, 1984 (aged 86)
- Place of death
- New York, New York
- Spouse
- Orson Desaix Munn II
- Full name
- Carolyn Nunder.
- Nationality
- United States.
- Occupation
- dressmaker and fashion designer.
- Languages
- English.
VALÉORINE Encyclopedia
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Documentary summary
Carrie Munn (January 29, 1898 – February 1, 1984), born Caroline M. Neunder, was an American fashion designer.
Admitted source layer · organised and presented by VALÉORINE
Note VALÉORINE
Carrie Munn (1898–1984) was a dressmaker and fashion designer, of American nationality. The dressmaker was born Carolyn Nunder in Buffalo. Languages used include English.
Composed from admitted, traceable facts · 26 September 2026
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wikidata · Q65092930 · wikipedia · Carrie Munn
In this article
Key facts
Key facts
• Name — Carrie Munn • Other Names — Carolyn Nunder (stage name) • Birth Name — Caroline Neunder • Born — January 29, 1898 • Birthplace — Buffalo, New York • Died — February 1, 1984 (aged 86) • Place of death — New York, New York • Spouse — Orson Desaix Munn II
Early life
Early life
Caroline M. Neunder was born in Buffalo, New York, the daughter of George F. Neunder and Carolina U. Kreuzer Neunder. Her mother died in 1907. George Griswold Frelinghuysen was her cousin.
Career
Career
As Caroline Nunder or Carolyn Nunder, she had a brief stage career, appearing as a showgirl in two Broadway productions, Girl o' Mine (1918) and Aphrodite (1919). She also designed costumes for Sonny (1921). She also published a short book, Everyday Problems in Etiquette: Explained in Pictures (1922). She opened a dress shop in New York City in 1920, to help support her sister after their father's death. Munn, a self-taught seamstress with no formal design training, opened another shop on Madison Avenue in 1941; she offered American-made couture gowns, dresses, suits, and separates during World War II and afterwards. She gave parties to show her latest designs to socialites and celebrities, including Elizabeth Parke Firestone and Dorothy Kilgallen, and often modeled her own creations at society events. Her typical silhouettes featured full skirts and nipped-in waists. "Every bodice is moulded close to the figure with a tiny waist. Do not expect limp sheaths or shirtwaist types from this designer," said a newspaper report of Munn's Fall 1952 collection. In 1957, her name was discussed for a possible appointment to an ambassadorship in Luxembourg or Belgium.
Personal life and legacy
Personal life and legacy
Munn married lawyer and magazine editor Orson Desaix Munn II in 1924; they had a son, Orson Desaix Munn III, born in 1925. Her husband died in 1958, and she died in 1984, in New York City, a few days after her 86th birthday. Museums holding works by Carrie Munn include The Henry Ford and the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston.
Identity and origins
Identity and origins
Carrie Munn was recorded at birth as Carolyn Nunder. The authorities additionally record the headings Mrs. Orson Munn, Carrie Nunder, Carolyn Nunder and Carolyn Nunder Munn. Her recorded language was English. She married Orson Desaix Munn II.
Identity
Identity
Carrie Munn is recorded as dressmaker and fashion designer.
Fashion designer and socialite Carrie Munn, in a 1951 Ronson advertisement.
Life, October 22, 1951
Life and career
Dated record
Life and career
The full dated record · 2 entries
1898
Carrie Munn was born in 1898 at Buffalo.
1984
Carrie Munn died in 1984.
Literature
Scholarly footprint
A count of publications is evidence of attention, not of standing, and is given here only as a measure.
Notes from the source article
Cited by Wikipedia
Notes from the source article
These works are cited by the source article, in its own numbering. They are recorded as its citations, not as sources VALÉORINE has verified.
- 1.Carrie Munn, Dress Designer In the 40's and 50's, Is Dead. The New York Times. 1984-02-18. 0362-4331.
- 2.Obituary for Caroline U. Neunder (Aged 35). Buffalo Courier. 13. 1907-05-26.
- 3.Carson Party. The Los Angeles Times. 30. 1960-03-08.
- 4.Story-Press association. The Green Book Magazine. 963. December 1918.
- 5.Bapst, Jacob L. Beryl Halley: The Life and Follies of a Ziegfeld Beauty, 1897-1988. McFarland. 130. 2019-07-26. 978-1-4766-7643-2.
- 6.Mantle, Burns. The Best Plays of 1919-1920: And the Year Book of the Drama in America. Small, Maynard. 391. 1920.
- 7.Rooney, Andy. Children Should Remember to be Kind to the Servants. The Pantagraph. 7. 1990-03-05.
- 8.Bronner, Milton. American Girls Shaplier, Better Dressed than British or French, Asserts Modiste. Wisconsin State Journal. 12. 1923-09-22.
- 9.Grift, Josephine van der. Childhood Dreams Make $50,000 a Year for this 24 Year-Old Girl. The Independent-Record. 10. 1923-10-31.
- 10.Colby, Anita. Destiny Hunts Carrie Munn. The Courier-Journal. 41. 1957-02-10.
- 11.Fiell, Charlotte. 1940s Fashion Sourcebook: The Definitive Sourcebook. Welbeck Publishing Group. 164. 2021-12-07. 978-1-80279-164-8.
- 12.Lambert, Eleanor. Carrie Munn Winter Collection Features 'Important' Dresses. Metropolitan Pasadena Star-News. 9. 1947-11-20.
- 13.Cabot, Cynthia. Once Casual Separates Get 'High Fashion' Rating. The Philadelphia Inquirer. 17. 1953-03-20.
- 14.Shaw, Eleanor. Preparing for MacArthur Visit Busies New Yorkers. The Spokesman-Review. 47. 1951-04-22.
- 15.Twenty-Fifth Wedding Anniversary Dress with Jacket, Worn by Elizabeth Parke Firestone, 1946. The Henry Ford.
- 16.Israel, Lee. Kilgallen. Dell. 278. 1980. 978-0-440-14565-3.
- 17.McCarthy, Julia. What They're Wearing. Daily News. 344. 1942-04-05.
- 18.Gown of the Year. Life. 161–162. December 5, 1949.
- 19.Carrie Munn Fashions Echo Eighteenth Century. The Charlotte Observer. 16. 1948-03-17.
- 20.Carrie Munn Stresses Feminine Silhouette. St. Louis Globe-Democrat. 23. 1950-04-20.
- 21.Carrie Munn Used Abstract Modern Art to Set Many Themes in Fall Collection. Alabama Tribune. 2. 1952-12-05.
- 22.Curtis, Olga. Mrs. Orson Munn, N. Y. Dress Designer, Has Hope of Becoming U. S. Ambassador. The Gazette. 2. 1957-01-12.
- 23.Kerr, Adelaide. War Works Many Changes in Lives of Society Crowd. The Birmingham News. 18. 1942-11-11.
- 24.Orson Munn, Attorney, at 75. Newsday (Suffolk Edition). 86. 1958-12-23.
- 25.Carrie Munn. The MFAH Collections.
References
Citations
References
Each reference names the institution holding it, so a reader may go to the document itself.
reference work
Secondary witnessreference work
Secondary witness
The Encyclopedia exists whether or not anything is for sale. Corrections are recorded rather than overwritten, and every version of this record is kept. Published 16 August 2026.
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