Lucy the Elephant

Lucy the Elephant is a 6-story elephant next to the beach in Margate City, NJ. For a nominal fee, visitors can climb the stairs into Lucy, passing by the original ticket booth (where tickets were sold for 10 cents!) and into the main part of Lucy's body.

Here, visitors get to watch a short documentary on the history of the elephant of the Jersey Shore, including the two other elephants, one in Cape May, NJ and one in Coney Island, NY. Lucy, the only remaining elephant, was built in 1881 and in 1976 was designated a National Historic Landmark.

From the documentary and the tour guides, visitors learn that Lucy was originally built to be a real estate office, then transformed into a summer home and was a tavern for a while (until she was nearly burnt down!).

While Lucy was moved down the block during her restoration, her eyes have seen the world change a great deal since 1881. Lucy looks out onto the Atlantic Ocean, at families and beach-goers, as she has done for the past 130 years. From the main room in Lucy, visitors can look out her eyes and see what she sees. Visitors can also look around at some of the original pieces to Lucy, as well as souvenirs and knick-knacks sold of Lucy.

 

Climbing further up the spiral staircase, the tour culminates atop Lucy's "howdah," an exact replica of her original. From the howdah, visitors get beautiful, sweeping views of the Atlantic Ocean and Margate, as well as beautiful, panoramic views of neighboring Atlantic City.