Belle of the Blue: past to present

GC’s scholarship pageant proves to be a long-lasting tradition

By CAITLIN KNOX
Editor-in-Chief

The college’s original Belle of the Blue to be crowned was Miss Anna Marie Lang of Bellevue, Ky. She was chosen from six nominees selected by the male student body.

Although other Georgetown College traditions have faded over time, Belle of the Blue is one that still remains. The college previously held pageants that crowned a “May Day Queen” and “Valentine’s Queen,” but in 1950 the Belle of the Blue yearbook began crowning a “Belle of the Blue.”

As said in the 1950 annual, “This southern lady exemplifies the ultimate in the qualities of refinement, culture and feminine beauty in the eyes of Georgetonians.”

The process began with the male student body nominating the girls, and after another elimination process, six potential “Belles” were announced. Their pictures were taken and sent to “an eminent authority on beauty for judging,” according to The Georgetonian in its Sept. 30, 1949 issue. It wasn’t until 1961 that Belle of the Blue took on the form of a scholarship pageant, which is the way we crown our Belle of the Blue today.

All pictures courtesy of Georgetown College Archives.

Bernice Gabby was crowned Belle of the Blue at the first pageant held. It took place in Cooke Memorial and was sponsored by the Pi Kappa Alpha Fraternity in Dec. 1961.

Al Capp, an eminent cartoonist of the day (famous for Li’l Abner), was the final authority on beauty, and chose the first winner out of six photographs that were sent to him.