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Miss America 1948
Miss America 1948
Date	September 11, 1948
Presenters	Bob Russell
Venue	Boardwalk Hall, Atlantic City, New Jersey
Entrants	55
Placements	15
Winner	BeBe Shopp; Minnesota
Congeniality	Yun Tau Zane; Hawaii
	← 1947 1949 →

Miss America 1948, the 22nd Miss America pageant, was held at the Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, New Jersey on September 11, 1948.^[1]

The winner, BeBe Shopp, was the first Miss Minnesota to take the crown. Shopp performed a song on a Vibraharp during the talent competition. Later in life, she became an Episcopalian minister.

Third runner-up, Miss Kansas, Vera J. Ralston, and another finalist, representing Chicago, Lois Nettleton, went on to become a successful Hollywood actress.

Results

Placements

Placement	Contestant
Miss America 1948	Minnesota – BeBe Shopp
1st Runner-Up	Wyoming – Carol Held
2nd Runner-Up	Alabama – Martha Ann Ingram
3rd Runner-Up	Kansas – Vera J. Ralston
4th Runner-Up	Oklahoma – Donna Jane Briggs
Top 15	Atlanta – Jerry Long Chicago – Lois Nettleton Detroit – Doris Evelyn Johnson Florida - Rosemary Carpenter Massachusetts – Barbara Louise Laughton Memphis – Lois Jeanette Welsh Montana – Patti Anne Luer New York City – Connie Inge Ronde Oregon – Joyce Davis Utah – Marilyn Robinson

Awards

Preliminary awards

Awards	Contestant
Lifestyle and Fitness	Atlanta – Jerry Long Kansas – Vera J. Ralston Minnesota – BeBe Shopp
Talent	Montana – Patti Anne Luer Tennessee – Dorothy Jane Free Utah – Marilyn Robinson

Other awards

Awards	Contestant
Miss Congeniality	Hawaii – Yun Tau Zane

Contestants


Title	Name	Hometown	Age	Talent	Placement	Awards	Notes
Alabama	Martha Ann Ingram	Tarrant		Classical Vocal, "Quando me'm vo'"	2nd Runner-up
Arizona	Donna McElroy	Phoenix		Dramatic Monologue
Arkansas	Van Louis McDaniel	Forrest City		Monologue, "Spartan Parents"
Atlanta	Jerry Long	Atlanta		Tap Dance, "Cherokee"	Top 15
Birmingham	Marjorie Orr	Birmingham
Boston	Barbara McGrath	Boston
California	Reba Watterson	Stockton
Canada	Betty Jean Ferguson	Halifax
Chicago	Lois Nettleton	Chicago		Dramatic Monologue from Saint Joan	Top 15
Colorado	Virginia Smith	Pueblo
Connecticut	Fairfax Mason	Bridgeport		Classical Vocal, "Mon cœur s'ouvre à ta voix"
Delaware	Lorna Edwardson	Dover		Classical Vocal, "Un Bel Di" from Madama Butterfly
Detroit	Doris Evelyn Johnson	Detroit		Vocal, "Worry, Worry, Worry"	Top 15
District of Columbia	Joann Miller		23	Vocal, "An Old, Old Castle in Scotland"
Florida	Rosemary Carpenter	Miami Beach		Classical Piano & Accordion, "Fantaisie-Impromptu" & "Two Guitars"	Top 15
Georgia	Gwendolyn West	Statesboro
Greater Philadelphia	Betty Jane Bruce	Philadelphia		Vocal, "Fool That I Am" & "Mean to Me"
Hawaii	Yun Tau Zane	Honolulu		Hula		Miss Congeniality	First Asian-American to compete at Miss America
Illinois	Viola Ruth Hutmacher	Quincy		Classical Vocal, "Italian Street Song"
Indiana	Patti Grubbs	Gary		Vocal, "When You Are Away"
Kansas	Vera June Ralston	Wichita	18	Oratory	3rd Runner-up	Preliminary Lifestyle & Fitness Award	Better known as actress Vera Miles
Kentucky	Mildred Joanne Hollinger	Louisville
Maine	Muriel Applebee	Enfield
Maryland	Juanita Melrose Lookabaugh	Cumberland		Hawaiian Hula Dance & Dress Design
Massachusetts	Barbara Laughton	Reading		Vocal, "The Moon Belongs to Everybody"	Top 15
Memphis	Lois Jeanette Welch	Memphis		Vocal & Fashion Design, "Gianni Mia"	Top 15
Michigan	Linda Carroll	Grand Rapids		Impersonations of famous people
Minnesota	BeBe Shopp	Hopkins	18	Vibraharp, "Caprice Viennois" by Fritz Kreisler	Winner	Preliminary Lifestyle & Fitness Award
Mississippi	Virginia Hollingsworth	Kosciusko
Missouri	Dorothy Smith	Kansas City
Montana	Patti Luer	Anaconda		Vocal/Dance, "Gypsy Song"	Top 15	Preliminary Talent Award
Nebraska	Betty Love Booth	Fremont
New Hampshire	Betty Taylor	Rochester		Dramatic Monologue
New Jersey	Barbara Anderson	Bloomfield
New Mexico	Betha Young	Cuba	22	Art Sculpture
New York	M. Yvonne Fix	Niagara Falls		Classical Vocal, "Un Bel Di" from Madama Butterfly
New York City	Connie Inge Ronde	New York City		Dramatic Reading, "State of the Union"	Top 15
North Carolina	Patsy Osborne	Lawndale		Vocal & Piano
Ohio	Maxine Waack	Fairview		Rumba Dance
Oklahoma	Donna Briggs	Tulsa		Painting Display	4th Runner-up
Omaha	Serena McKinney	Omaha
Oregon	Joyce Davis	Bend		Classical Vocal, "Mon cœur s'ouvre à ta voix"	Top 15
Pennsylvania	Ruth Douglas	Harrisburg		Vocal Medley, "Let my Song Fill Your Heart" & "Lover"
Pittsburgh	Sarah Cromwell	Pittsburgh
Puerto Rico	Irma Nydia Vázquez
South Carolina	Esther Greene	Greenville
South Dakota	Myrna Clemenson	Conde
Tennessee	Dorothy Free	Chattanooga		Vocal Medley, "Let my Song Fill Your Heart" & "Embraceable You"
Texas	Bonnie Jean Bland	Orange		Vocal/Art Display, "Put the Blame on Mame"
Utah	Marilyn Robinson	Ogden		Dramatic Monologue, "Tommy, Tommy, Tommy"	Top 15	Preliminary Talent Award
Vermont	Jean Peatman	Montpelier
Virginia	Bobby Joe Wilson	Hillsville
Washington	Lorraine Lowder	Aberdeen		Hula Dance
West Virginia	Jane Queen	Huntington		Vocal & Piano
Wisconsin	Marvene Fischer	Milwaukee	19
Wyoming	Carol Held	Douglas		Piano, Hungarian Opus 9 by Edward MacDowell	1st Runner-up