Miss America 1921

Miss America 1921
Date	September 7, 1921
Presenters	King Neptune (Hudson Maxim) Thomas P. Endicott
Venue	Million Dollar Pier, Atlantic City, New Jersey
Entrants	8
Placements	1
Winner	Margaret Gorman Washington, D.C.

What has become known as the 1st Miss America Pageant was, at its start in 1921, an activity designed to attract tourists to extend their Labor Day holiday weekend and enjoy festivities in Atlantic City, New Jersey. Atlantic City's Inter-City Beauty Contest, as it was initially called, attracted over 1,500 photographic entries from around the country, all vying to win the "Golden Mermaid" award and cash prizes. The first winner, Margaret Gorman^[1] decided to enter the contest the following year and, as Washington D.C. had already selected a contestant to represent their area, the contest officials allowed her entrance as Miss America just two weeks prior to the follow-up competition.^[2][3]

Contestants at the 1921 Pageant; Miss Atlantic City (Florence Burke), Miss Philadelphia, and Miss Washington DC.

Results

Placements

Final results	Contestant
Miss America 1923	Miss Washington, D.C. - Margaret Gorman
1st - Professional	Miss New York City - Virginia Lee
1st - Amateur	(Camden, N.J.) Miss Camden - Kathryn Gearon
1st - Bathers' Revue	Miss Washington, D.C. - Margaret Gorman

Contestants

Camden, NJ - Kathryn Gearon Harrisburg, PA - Emma Pharo New York, NY - Virginia Lee Newark, NJ - Margaret Bates Ocean City, NJ - Hazel Harris Philadelphia, PA - Nellie Orr Pittsburgh, PA - Thelma Matthews Washington DC - Margaret Gorman References ^ "Fairest In A 1000!". Spartanburg Herald. 1921-09-09.  ^ "Maxim Bars Perfume for Girls in Pageant". The New York Times. 1922-08-29.  ^ "A Row of Beauties in Atlantic City Pageant". Nevada State Journal. 1921-09-17.  External links Miss America official website Secondary sources Bivens, Ann-Marie (1991). "2". Miss America In Pursuit of the Crown. Mater Media Limited. ISBN 0-942361-27-x.  Saulino Osborne, Angela (1995). "Prologue, 2". Miss America The Dream Lives On. Taylor Publishing Company. ISBN 0-87833-110-7.  Algra, Keimpe (1999). "The Beginnings of Cosmology". The Cambridge Companion to Early Greek Philosophy. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-44667-8.