Visitors and residents at the Jersey Shore have known it for generations -- Lucy the Elephant is the best.
While, now everyone around the country knows that the Margate, New Jersey, attraction towers above the rest thanks to it being named the Best Roadside Attraction in the United States by USA Today.
"Listed on the National Park Registry of Historical Landmarks, Lucy the Elephant stands six stories high in Josephine Harron Park," USA TODAY wrote. "Visitors can stop by and have their photos taken with Lucy, and, for those who wish to go inside the elephant, guided tours are available."
USA TODAY editors narrowed down the roadside attractions to the 18 best and then let readers vote for their favorites. NBC10 first told you about the contest back in April.
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Lucy beat out other roadside draws like Shealy's Official Skunk Ape Headquarters in Ochopee, Florida; the World's Largest Ball of Twine in Cawker City, Kansas; Carhenge in Alliance, Nebraska; Wheat Jesus in Colby, Kansas; and Paul Bunyan and Babe the Blue Ox in Bemidji, Minnesota in the USA Today Reader's Choice Awards poll.
Lucy's handlers celebrated on social media:
"We did it! Lucy the Elephant has officially been named America’s #1 Best Roadside Attraction by USA Today," Lucy's Instagram page said. "Thank you so much to everyone who shared about the contest and voted! ❤️ We couldn’t have done this without you."
The Scene
Lucy the Elephant was already the country's oldest roadside attraction. What drew people to voting for the nearly 143-year-old giant beachfront pachyderm?
"Just the significance of her size," Pat Hendricks of Tansboro, New Jersey, said. "It's so much different than viewing her on TV."
"It's really exciting to be listed with all those other sites," Lucy the Elephant executive director Richard Helfant told NBC10 back in April. “I looked at the whole list. There's nothing quite like Lucy."
The beloved Jersey Shore icon and national historic landmark stands 6 stories high and houses a museum.
The nonprofit that runs Lucy hopes this attention will also help bring in donations as it gears up for the third phase of a major restoration project planned to start in September.
It'll focus on her interior and replace the old gift shop with a state-of-the-art welcome center.
“By being featured in USA Today, which is a national publication, it's huge. It's priceless publicity for us whether we win or not," Helfant explained.
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