Miss America 1921 - wikipedia Miss America 1921 Miss America 1921 Date September 8, 1921 Presenters King Neptune XII ( Hudson Maxim ), Thomas P. Endicott Venue Million Dollar Pier, Atlantic City, New Jersey Entrants 8 Placements Winner Margaret Gorman Washington, D.C. 1922 → What has become known as the first 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. Six `` Inter-City Beauties, '' arrived in Atlantic City and entered a new event : The `` Inter-City Beauty '' Contest. It was judged in stylish afternoon attire not only by the judges, but also the public, who shared in 50 percent of the final score. Personality played a large role in the voting as masses of people surrounded each entrant to get to know her better and throw questions at them throughout the event. Later, the entrants were escorted and presented on the stage of the Keith Theatre on the Garden Pier. The amateur prize, the Watkins Trophy, was awarded to Miss Washington, DC, Margaret Gorman, Miss South Jersey, Kathryn M. Gearon placed second, receiving $100 in gold. A special professional prize, the Endicott Trophy, was awarded to Miss New York, silent film actress Virginia Lee. An immediate hit with the crowds, the `` Inter-City Beauties '' were later judged head - to - head against two other `` Beauty '' winners in selected classes of the now famous Bather 's Revue : an `` amateur winner '' from over two hundred local women and tourists, and a `` professional winner, '' which included a field of eleven professional models and actresses. In this extravagant and much - hyped final event, Margaret Gorman won the Grand Prize : the Golden Mermaid trophy. Gorman decided to enter the contest the following year and, since Washington D.C. had already selected another contestant to represent their area in the 1922 contest, officials allowed Gorman to compete as `` Miss America '' just two weeks prior to the competition which marks the first time the title was actually used. Contestants at the 1921 Pageant ; Miss Atlantic City ( Florence Burke ), Miss Philadelphia, and Miss Washington DC. Contents 1 Results 2 Contestants 3 References 3.1 Secondary sources 4 External links Results Final results Contestant Miss America 1921 Washington, D.C. - Margaret Gorman 1st - Professional New York City - Virginia Lee 1st - Amateur Camden - Kathryn Gearon 1st - Bathers ' Revue Washington, D.C. - Margaret Gorman Contestants Camden - Kathryn Gearon Harrisburg - Emma Pharo New York City - Virginia Lee Newark - Margaret Bates Ocean City - Hazel Harris Philadelphia - Nellie Orr Pittsburgh - Thelma Matthews Washington, D.C. - Margaret Gorman References Jump up ^ `` People & Events : The First Miss America Beauty Pageant, 1921 ''. PBS. Jump up ^ `` Miss America History 1921 ''. Retrieved 2012 - 04 - 13. Jump up ^ `` Miss America History 1921 ''. Retrieved 2012 - 04 - 13. Jump up ^ `` Miss America History 1921 ''. Retrieved 2012 - 04 - 13. Jump up ^ `` Fairest In A 1000 ! ''. Spartanburg Herald. 1921 - 09 - 09. Jump up ^ `` Maxim Bars Perfume for Girls in Pageant ''. The New York Times. 1922 - 08 - 29. Jump up ^ `` A Row of Beauties in Atlantic City Pageant ''. Nevada State Journal. 1921 - 09 - 17. 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. External links Miss America official website Miss America 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1984 1985 1986 2017 2018 2019 Titleholders Award winners Outstanding Teen MAOT State pageants Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Miss_America_1921&oldid=799013709 '' Categories : Miss America 1921 in the United States Talk Contents About Wikipedia Русский Edit links This page was last edited on 5 September 2017, at 03 : 49. About Wikipedia

Question: grand prize for winning the first ever miss america
Answer: the Golden Mermaid trophy