There she is, Miss America. But where is she now?
Share Now on:
There she is, Miss America. But where is she now?
There she is. And there she goes?
Over the years, more than 80 women have worn the Miss America crown . This past Sunday, Miss New York, Nina Davuluri, became the most recent inductee to the Miss America club at the 87th pageant. She beat 52 other contestants for the title and is the first Miss America of Indian descent. As Miss America, Davuluri can look forward to a year of travel — covering approximately 20,000 miles a month, changing her location every 24 to 48 hours, according to the Miss America Organization.
So what are Miss America’s origins? It actually started out as a marketing idea. The Businessmen’s League of Atlantic City wanted to develop a plan to keep tourists in the area beyond Labor Day. They organized a Fall Frolic, which was held on September 25, 1920. Among the events held that day was a parade of young women being pushed along the Boardwalk in rolling chairs. The next year, Businessmen’s League of Atlantic City noticed that East Coast newspapers had begun to sponsor beauty pageants judged on photograph submissions, and decided to capitalize on the idea. They invited the winners of these newspaper beauty contests to the next Fall Frolic to compete in a beauty contest. On September 8, 1921, 100,000 people came to the boardwalk to watch the contestants, and witnessed 16-year-old Margaret Gorman of Washington, D.C. being crowned the winner. The following year, when she returned, she was draped in the American flag and called “Miss America.”
Gorman went on to marry a real estate man and continued to live in Washington D.C. But what about the other women who have worn the Miss America crown? Did they all become motivational speakers? TV hosts? We decided to take a look at where our post-2000 Miss America winners have ended up — and chances are you might see them at a public speaking event near you.
| Year | Winner | State | Where are they now? |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | Nina Davuluri | New York | University of Michigan graduate |
| 2013 | Mallory Hagan | New York | Aspiring global marketing director |
| 2012 | Laura Kaeppeler | Wisconsin | Performer, advocate, entrepreneur, aspiring lawyer |
| 2011 | Teresa Scanlan | Nebraska | Motivational speaker, aspiring lawyer, performer |
| 2010 | Caressa Cameron | Virginia | HIV/AIDS activist, motivational speaker, singer |
| 2009 | Katie Stam | Indiana | Public speaker, advocate, vocalist, author, product developer |
| 2008 | Kirsten Haglund | Michigan | Founder of a foundation, Fox News contributor |
| 2007 | Lauren Nelson | Oklahoma | Speaker, worship leader, host |
| 2006 | Jennifer Berry | Oklahoma | Motivational speaker, leadership consultant |
| 2005 | Deidre Downs | Alabama | Aspiring physician, children's advocate |
| 2004 | Ericka Dunlap | Florida | Aspiring country music artist, Singer, performer |
| 2003 | Erika Harold | Illinois | Attorney, candidate for state congressional office |
| 2002 | Katie Harman | Oregon | Performer, entrepreneur, speaker |
| 2001 | Angela Perez Baraquio | Hawaii | Motivational speaker, TV host, emcee, teacher |
| 2000 | Heather French | Kentucky | Designer, public speaker, artist, author |
Stories You Might Like
There’s a lot happening in the world. Through it all, Marketplace is here for you.
You rely on Marketplace to break down the world’s events and tell you how it affects you in a fact-based, approachable way. We rely on your financial support to keep making that possible.
Your donation today powers the independent journalism that you rely on. For just $5/month, you can help sustain Marketplace so we can keep reporting on the things that matter to you.
