List of Miss America winners

Margaret Gorman, the first Miss America, 1921

Elizabeth Ward Gracen 2010: Elizabeth Ward won in 1982.

Vanessa Williams in 2010. Vanessa won in 1984.

Heather French, 2000 winner

Nina Davuluri, Miss America 2014

Miss America is an American beauty contest. It is an annual competition open to women from the United States between the ages of 18 and 28. Contestants are judged on talent and interviews in addition to their physical attractiveness. It is run by the Miss America Organization, a non-profit organization based in Linwood, New Jersey. The corporation has developed the "Miss America Scholarship Program", which awards educational scholarships to successful competitors.^[1]

The contest began in Atlantic City, New Jersey in 1921. It was an idea of newspaper reporter, Harry Finley, to increase newspaper sales and to promote Atlantic City.^[2]: 12 The first competition had eight entrants.^[2]: 14 The entrants were selected by their local city newspapers and their prize was a holiday in Atlantic City, and to take part in the "Intercity Beauty Contest". This was held as part of the second annual Atlantic City Pageant. Margaret Gorman, "Miss Washington D.C.", a school girl from Washington D.C was selected by the Washington Herald.^[3] She won the "Inter-City Beauty, Amateur" and "The Most Beautiful Bathing Girl in America" contests. She was given the Golden Mermaid Trophy. Because these were awkward titles, in 1922 Gorman was renamed as "Miss America".^[3]

Winners

Year	Miss America	From
1921	Margaret Gorman	Washington, D.C.
1922	Mary Campbell	Columbus, Ohio
1923	Mary Campbell	Columbus, Ohio
1924	Ruth Malcomson	Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
1925	Fay Lanphier	Oakland, California
1926	Norma Smallwood	Tulsa, Oklahoma
1927	Lois Delander	Joliet, Illinois
1932	Dorothy Hann	Camden, New Jersey
1933	Marian Bergeron	West Haven, Connecticut
1935	Henrietta Leaver	Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
1936	Rose Coyle	Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
1937	Bette Cooper	Bertrand Island, New Jersey
1938	Marilyn Meseke	Marion, Ohio
1939	Patricia Donnelly	Detroit, Michigan
1940	Frances Marie Burke	Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
1941	Rosemary LaPlanche	Los Angeles, California
1942	Jo-Carroll Dennison	Tyler, Texas
1943	Jean Bartel	Los Angeles, California
1944	Venus Ramey	Washington, D.C.
1945	Bess Myerson	New York, New York
1946	Marilyn Buferd	Los Angeles, California
1947	Barbara Jo Walker	Memphis, Tennessee
1948	BeBe Shopp	Hopkins, Minnesota
1949	Jacque Mercer	Litchfield Park, Arizona
1951	Yolande Betbeze	Mobile, Alabama
1952	Colleen Kay Hutchins	Salt Lake City, Utah
1953	Neva Jane Langley	Macon, Georgia
1954	Evelyn Margaret Ay	Ephrata, Pennsylvania
1955	Lee Meriwether	San Francisco, California
1956	Sharon Ritchie	Denver, Colorado
1957	Marian McKnight	Manning, South Carolina
1958	Marilyn Van Derbur	Denver, Colorado
1959	Mary Ann Mobley	Brandon, Mississippi
1960	Lynda Lee Mead	Natchez, Mississippi
1961	Nancy Fleming	Montague, Michigan
1962	Maria Fletcher	Asheville, North Carolina
1963	Jacquelyn Mayer	Sandusky, Ohio
1964	Donna Axum	El Dorado, Arkansas
1965	Vonda Kay Van Dyke	Phoenix, Arizona
1966	Deborah Irene Bryant	Overland Park, Kansas
1967	Jane Anne Jayroe	Laverne, Oklahoma
1968	Debra Dene Barnes	Moran, Kansas
1969	Judith Anne Ford	Belvidere, Illinois
1970	Pamela Anne Eldred	Birmingham, Michigan
1971	Phyllis Ann George	Denton, Texas
1972	Laurie Lea Schaefer	Columbus, Ohio
1973	Terry Anne Meeuwsen	De Pere, Wisconsin
1974	Rebecca Ann King	Denver, Colorado
1975	Shirley Cothran	Fort Worth, Texas
1976	Tawny Elaine Godin	Yonkers, New York
1977	Dorothy Kathleen Benham	Edina, Minnesota
1978	Susan Perkins	Columbus, Ohio
1979	Kylene Barker	Galax, Virginia
1980	Cheryl Prewitt	Ackerman, Mississippi
1981	Susan Powell	Elk City, Oklahoma
1982	Elizabeth Ward	Russellville, Arkansas
1983	Debra Maffett	Anaheim, California
1984	Vanessa L. Williams	Millwood, New York
	Suzette Charles	Mays Landing, New Jersey
1985	Sharlene Wells	Salt Lake City, Utah
1986	Susan Akin	Meridian, Mississippi
1987	Kellye Cash	Memphis, Tennessee
1988	Kaye Lani Rae Rafko	Monroe, Michigan
1989	Gretchen Carlson	Anoka, Minnesota
1990	Debbye Turner	Mexico, Missouri
1991	Marjorie Judith Vincent	Oak Park, Illinois
1992	Carolyn Suzanne Sapp	Kona, Hawaii
1993	Leanza Cornett	Jacksonville, Florida
1994	Kimberly Clarice Aiken	Columbia, South Carolina
1995	Heather Whitestone	Birmingham, Alabama
1996	Shawntel Smith	Muldrow, Oklahoma
1997	Tara Dawn Holland	Overland Park, Kansas
1998	Katherine Shindle	Evanston, Illinois
1999	Nicole Johnson	Roanoke, Virginia
2000	Heather French	Augusta, Kentucky
2001	Angela Perez Baraquio	Honolulu, Hawaii
2002	Katie Harman	Gresham, Oregon
2003	Erika Harold	Urbana, Illinois
2004	Ericka Dunlap	Orlando, Florida
2005	Deidre Downs	Birmingham, Alabama
2006	Jennifer Berry	Tulsa, Oklahoma
2007	Lauren Nelson	Lawton, Oklahoma
2008	Kirsten Haglund	Farmington Hills, Michigan
2009	Katie Stam	Seymour, Indiana
2010	Caressa Cameron	Fredericksburg, Virginia
2011	Teresa Scanlan	Gering, Nebraska
2012	Laura Kaeppeler	Kenosha, Wisconsin
2013	Mallory Hagan	Brooklyn, New York
2014	Nina Davuluri	Fayetteville, New York
2015	Kira Kazantsev	Bronx, New York
2016	Betty Cantrel	Warner Robins, Georgia
2017	Savvy Shields	Fayetteville, Arkansas
2018	Cara Mund	Bismarck, North Dakota
2019	Nia Franklin	Winston-Salem, North Carolina
2020	Camille Schrier	Newtown, Pennsylvania
2021	No pageant was held due to COVID-19 pandemic
2022	Emma Broyles	Anchorage, Alaska

References

1. "Become a Contestant". Archived from the original on 2014-07-23. Retrieved 2015-05-26.
2. Riverol, A. R. (1992). Live from Atlantic City: The History of the Miss America Pageant Before, After, and in Spite of Television. Bowling Green State University Popular Press. ISBN 0-87972-557-5. Retrieved 17 January 2013 – via questia.com.^{[permanent dead link]}
3. "Miss America : 1921". missamerica.org. 2013. Archived from the original on 17 April 2012. Retrieved 17 January 2013.

Other websites

• Official site