By: Valerie Lonkart
Just how famous is Lucy the Elephant? He has his very own postcard during the opening sequence of National Lampoon’s Vacation, is a registered National Historic Landmark, and is America’s oldest roadside attraction, even older than the Statue of Liberty. To celebrate his 140th Birthday, the Save the Lucy Committee is having a “National Landmark’s Summer Vacation at Lucy” celebration on Saturday, July 17th from 10 a.m. until 8 p.m.
Before we dive into the festivities, no, the he is not a typo. According to lucytheelephant.org, “the Elephant was originally named ‘Elephant Bazaar’ when James V. Lafferty, Jr. built the structure in 1881. A future owner of the elephant, Sophia Gertzen, changed the name to ‘Lucy’ and it stuck — but Lucy is not a girl as the name suggests! Since Lucy has very prominent tusks, ‘she’ has to be a ‘he.’ So, Lucy is actually a boy!” This reporter learned something new today.
“After last year’s scaled down event due to the pandemic, we are ready to celebration Lucy’s 140th milestone birthday in grand fashion,” said Lucy Executive Director Rich Helfant.
This year’s birthday extravaganza will feature such favorites as the trackless train ride and a 9-hole miniature golf course. There will be new and exciting rides, games, and inflatables for kids of all ages. Back by popular demand, Mackie the Stiltwalker will also be celebrating Lucy. Hot dogs, funnel cakes, French fries, and slushies will all be available throughout the day. And no party would be complete without cake! A birthday cake for our favorite elephant will be served up at 3 p.m.
If a tour of Lucy is on your bucket list (and it really ought to be), you’re in luck! Tours of the inside of Lucy will be conducted every 45 minutes throughout the day. Tour-takers will enjoy a short video that gives a brief history of Lucy, have an opportunity to look out of Lucy’s eyes, and will be able to climb the stairs to Lucy’s howdah to see a spectacular 360-degree view of the ocean and island. Participants in the tour will get a deeper understanding of how Lucy went from being an attraction to a tavern to a summer home and back again. They can view artifacts and pieces of fabric used in the original construction as well as view Lucy-themed artwork by local artist Jon Baker.
And of course, there will be a collectible t-shirt. This year’s theme? You guessed it: it will resemble the movie posters from the National Lampoon movies of the 1980s.
This year’s event is sponsored in part by OceanFirst Bank and Westfield Architects and Preservation Consultants. All proceeds from this event will go toward Lucy’s re-surfacing project, which is slated to begin in October 2021.
Lucy is located at 9200 Atlantic Avenue in Margate. The rain date will be Sunday, July 18th.
A former educator, Valerie is a long-time South Jersey resident. She spent over 20 years in the classroom teaching students English and Writing at the middle school and college levels. Prior to working in education, Valerie worked as a professional writer and editor in Washington, D.C. Valerie currently resides in Margate, NJ with her husband and two teenage kids. When not walking the beach with her puppy, she can be found teaching yoga on the island.
