Originally conceived in the 1920s as a traditional Southern beauty pageant to promote Mobile’s azalea blossoms, the event grew in the post-war years. In 1957, local businessmen established a national scholarship program, and the first national competition was held in Mobile the following year. In the past 48 years, more than 700,000 young American women - including Diane Sawyer, Kim Basinger and Debra Messing - have taken part in Junior Miss programs across the country.
Ideals of American femininity have changed since Phyllis A. Whitenack of West Virginia won the first Junior Miss Pageant in 1958. With a crown on her head and a silver scepter in her hand, Whitenack posed demurely in a flouncy white dress with a billowing pink satin train.
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