Miss Illinois
For the state pageant affiliated with Miss USA, see Miss Illinois USA.
Developed by the Miss America Organization, the Miss Illinois program exists to provide personal and professional opportunities for young women and to promote their voices in culture, politics and the community. The program provides a forum for today's young women to express their viewpoints, talents, and accomplishments to audiences during the telecast and to the public-at-large during the ensuing year. Almost all contestants have either received, or are in the process of earning, college or postgraduate degrees and utilize Miss America scholarship grants to further their educations.
The first "Miss Illinois" sent to the national pageant, Lois Delander, won the Miss America title. Including Delander, five Miss Illinois representatives have won Miss America.
To become Miss America, a contestant must first win a local competition and then compete to represent her state, a process requiring personal commitment, hard work and talent. A woman may compete at the state level more than once, but may only compete in the national Miss America competition one time. Thousands of women participate each year in the local and state events, culminating in the selection of 52 national finalists who vie for the Miss America title. Tens of thousands of volunteers organize the local and state preliminary competitions, promoting community involvement throughout the United States and furthering scholarship and achievement among young women in their communities.
The Miss America Organization has partnered with Children's Miracle Network Hospitals to raise funds and awareness for children's hospitals throughout the United States. Contestants competing in Miss America-sponsored competitions raise donations through appearances and fundraisers that benefit Children's Miracle Network Hospitals and the Miss America Scholarship Fund. In addition, each new Miss America becomes the goodwill ambassador for Children's Miracle Network Hospitals, speaking on behalf of kids treated at children's hospitals and raising awareness around the country. It's just another way the Miss America Organization helps young women leave a legacy of service, scholarship, and support.
Winners
| Year | Name | Hometown | Age | Local Title | Miss America Talent | Placement at Miss America | Special scholarships at Miss America | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | Crystal Davis | Anna | 22 | Miss Southern Illinois | Vocal "That's Life" | |||
| 2014 | Marisa Buchheit | Chicago | 24 | Miss Chicago | Operatic Vocal "Je veux vivre" from Roméo et Juliette | |||
| 2013 | Brittany Smith | Elmhurst | 23 | Miss Northern Suburbs | Irish Step Dancing "Lord of the Dance" | |||
| 2012 | Megan Jo Ervin | Rushville | 23 | Miss Quincy | Dance "Faithfully" | Top 10 | Preliminary Lifestyle & Fitness Award (Swimsuit) | 1st runner-up at Miss Illinois 2011 as Miss Macomb and Contestant at National Sweetheart 2011 |
| 2011 | Hannah Smith[1] | Huntley | 20 | Miss Windy City | Ballet en Pointe "Palladio" | Top 10 | ||
| 2010 | Whitney Thorpe-Klinsky | New Baden | 22 | Miss River to River | Tap Dance "On the Dance Floor" | |||
| 2009 | Erin O'Connor | Evergreen Park | 20 | Miss Macomb | Ballet en Pointe "I Wanna Dance with Somebody Remix" | |||
| 2008 | Katie Lorenz | Chicago | 24 | Miss Chicago | Lyrical Dance "Footprints in the Sand" | |||
| 2007 | Ashley Hatfield[2] | Anna | 24 | Miss Heartland | Vocal "To Love You More" | |||
| 2006 | Heidi Ekstrom | Mundelein | 24 | Miss Kane County | Ballet en Pointe "Ride" | |||
| 2005 | Lauren Allen | Batavia | 21 | Miss Western Suburbs | Freestyle Gymnastics "Rhythm of the Night" | |||
| 2004 | Michelle LaGroue | Naperville | 24 | Miss Chicago | Vocal "I Know the Truth" from Aida | Had previously held the title in 2002 when Erika Harold won Miss America, this was allowed as she had not previously competed at Miss America. Was also Illinois' Junior Miss 1998. | ||
| 2003 | Andrea Fritz | Schaumburg | 21 | Miss Chicago | Lyrical Dance "Dance With My Father" | |||
| 2002 | Michelle LaGroue* | Naperville | Miss Tinley Park | |||||
| Erika Harold | Urbana | 22 | Miss Land of Lincoln | Classical Vocal "Habanera" | Winner | Preliminary Interview Award, Preliminary On-stage Interview Award, Overall Interview Award | ||
| 2001 | Kristin Castillo | Macomb | 18 | Miss Macomb | Classical Violin "Praeludium & Allegro" | |||
| 2000 | Jenny Powers | Andover, MA | 21 | Miss Northern Illinois | Classical Vocal "Quando me'n vo'" | Preliminary Talent Award, Non-finalist Talent Award | Was eligible to compete for Miss Illinois as a student at Northwestern University | |
| 1999 | Jade Smalls | Evanston | 21 | Miss Chicago | Classical Piano "Etude in C Minor" | 1st runner-up | ||
| 1998 | Amanda Jo Meadows | Sycamore | Miss Macomb | Baton "1-2-3 Maria" | Non-finalist Talent Award | |||
| 1997 | Ashley Eisenhauer* | Herrin | ||||||
| Katherine Shindle | Evanston | 20 | Miss Lake-Cook | Vocal "Don't Rain on My Parade" | Winner | Preliminary Talent Award | ||
| 1996 | Tania Gibson | Lake Barrington | 19 | Miss Fox River Valley | Vocal "As If We Never Said Goodbye" from Sunset Boulevard | |||
| 1995 | Tracy Hayes | Wheaton | 22 | Miss Greater DuPage County | Vocal "Tonight" | 4th runner-up | Preliminary Swimsuit Award | |
| 1994 | Chuti Tiu | Chicago/West Allis, Wis. | 24 | Miss Kankakee | Classical Piano | Non-finalist Talent Award | America's Junior Miss 1987 representing Wisconsin | |
| 1993 | Sara Martin | Schaumburg | 20 | Miss Schaumburg | Vocal "Hello, Young Lovers" | Non-finalist Talent Award | America's Junior Miss 1990 | |
| 1992 | Kathleen Farrell | Chicago | 23 | Miss Kankakee | Classical Piano "Danza No. 5" | Non-finalist Talent Award | Miss Illinois USA 1994, Sister of Miss New York 1984 and Miss Florida 1985 | |
| 1991 | Cheryl Majercik | Niles | 26 | Miss Chicago | Classical Vocal "O Mio Babbino Caro" | Non-finalist Talent Award | ||
| 1990 | Jaclyn Greer* | Granite City | Miss Madison County | |||||
| Marjorie Vincent | Oak Park | 25 | Miss Kankakee | Classical Piano "Fantaisie-Impromptu" | Winner | Preliminary Talent Award | ||
| 1989 | Jeri Zimmermann | Evanston | 21 | Miss Northwestern University | Vocal "On My Own" | 3rd runner-up | Preliminary Swimsuit Award | Actress best known for playing the Borg Seven of Nine on Star Trek: Voyager |
| 1988 | Dawn Spicuzza | Collinsville | 22 | Miss Bethalto | Vocal "If I Loved You" | |||
| 1987 | Cindi Hodgkins | Schaumburg | 22 | Miss Chicago | Vocal Medley "My Man" & "But the World Goes Round" | |||
| 1986 | Lisa Heussner | Pekin | 21 | Miss Pekin | Dramatic Interpretation "Emily Dickinson, Portrait of a Poet" | |||
| 1985 | Karen Moncrieff | Chicago | 21 | Miss Northwestern University | Popular Vocal "Through the Eyes of Love" from Ice Castles | Toured with 1986 Miss America Gillette Show Troupe | ||
| 1984 | Ruth Booker | Chicago | 21 | Miss Chicago | Vocal "Kiss Me In the Rain" | |||
| 1983 | Rebecca (Becky) Bush | Chicago | 24 | Miss Chicago | Vocal "It's My Turn" | Actress, using the name Rebeccah Bush, played Detective Katie Grant on Jake and the Fatman | ||
| 1982 | Jaleigh Jeffers | Mt. Carmel | 21 | Miss Southern Illinois | Piano Solo "Bumble Boogie" | |||
| 1981 | Sandra Truitt | Evanston | 25 | Miss North Shore | Classical Vocal "Près des remparts de Séville" from Carmen | 1st runner-up | Preliminary Talent Award | |
| 1980 | Blythe Sawyer | Naperville | 22 | Miss Chicago | Classical Vocal "The Jewel Song" from Faust | Non-finalist Talent Award | ||
| 1979 | Elizabeth Russell | Pekin | 20 | Miss Heart of Illinois | Classical Vocal "O Luce di Quest'Anima" from Linda di Chamounix | Reporter for Wcvb-tv, Assumed Miss Illinois title after original winner, Shanna McNeill, was stripped of the title[3][4] | ||
| 1978 | Debra Carlson | Ottawa | 19 | Miss Ottawa | Flute Solo "Carnival of Venice" | Non-finalist Talent Award | ||
| 1977 | Nancy Beatty | Avon | 22 | Miss Macomb | Classical Vocal "Voices of Spring" | |||
| 1976 | Betsy Jamison | Mundelein | 24 | Miss Mundelein | Popular Vocal "Who Will Buy?" from Oliver! | |||
| 1975 | Jean Waters | Tuscola | 22 | Miss Crossroads Country | Gymnastic Dance / Trampoline "High School Cadets" | |||
| 1974 | Jean Ahern | Hinsdale | 21 | Miss Hinsdale-Clarendon Hills | Ballet en Pointe "Kitri's Variation" from Don Quixote | 2nd runner-up | Preliminary Talent Award | |
| 1973 | Colleen Metternich | Carthage | 23 | Miss Heart of Illinois | Piano Solo "Variations on a Twelve Note Theme" | Top 10 | Preliminary Talent Award | Toured with Miss America USO Troupe |
| 1972 | Carolyn Paulus | Elmhurst | 20 | Miss Macomb | Classical Vocal "Glitter And Be Gay" from Candide | |||
| 1971 | Anita Pankratz | Chicago | 21 | Miss Chicago | Vocal / Piano "Someone to Watch Over Me" | |||
| 1970 | Lynn Alexander | Loami | 18 | Miss Springfield | Classical Vocal "Vissi d'arte" | |||
| 1969 | Dulcie Scripture | Elgin | 20 | Miss Elgin | Piano Solo "Khachaturian's Toccata" | Non-finalist Talent Award | ||
| 1968 | Sharon Mitchell* | Westchester | 19 | Miss Bellwood-Westchester | ||||
| Judith Ford | Belvidere | 18 | Miss Boone County | Acrobatic Dance & Trampoline Act "The Blue Danube" | Winner | Preliminary Swimsuit Award, Preliminary Talent Award | ||
| 1967 | Kathryn Myers | Aurora | 20 | Miss Fox Valley | Dramatic Reading "Ion" | |||
| 1966 | Mary Lee Inzerello | Elk Grove | 19 | Miss Quincy | Modern Dance | |||
| 1965 | Kathleen Oros | Granite City | 20 | Miss Granite City | Popular Vocal "Just You Wait" from My Fair Lady | |||
| 1964 | Patricia Quillen | North Aurora | 21 | Miss Geneva | Clarinet Solo | Finalist at National Press Photographers' Pageant 1962 | ||
| 1963 | Judith Schlieper | Decatur | Miss Decatur | Siamese Dance | ||||
| 1962 | Pamela Gilbert | Carbondale | 21 | Miss Carbondale | Dramatic Reading | Preliminary Swimsuit Award | ||
| Donnalyn Freund | Winnetka | 20 | Vocal "I Enjoy Being a Girl" | Non-finalist Talent Award | Competed as Miss Chicago | |||
| 1961 | Jacqueline Bingert | Winthrop Harbor | 21 | Miss Waukegan | Tap Dance & India Ink Sketching | |||
| Nancy Kesler | Oak Park | 18 | Modern Dance | Competed as Miss Chicago | ||||
| 1960 | Vicky Nutter | Vandalia | 18 | Miss Vandalia | Presentation of Fashion Designs | Non-finalist Talent Award | ||
| Margaret McDowell | Evanston | 21 | Dramatic Reading | Non-fFinalist Talent Award | Competed as Miss Chicago | |||
| 1959 | Suzanne Johnson | Chicago | 21 | Vocal "Hello, Young Lovers" | Top 10 | Preliminary Talent Award | ||
| Carol Rubin | Chicago | 18 | Modern Jazz Dance | Competed as Miss Chicago | ||||
| 1958 | Anita Olson | River Forest | Piano "Brahms' Rhapsody in G Minor" | |||||
| Audra Deckmann | Chicago | Dance | Non-finalist Talent Award | Competed as Miss Chicago | ||||
| 1957 | Jeannie Beacham | Downers Grove | Drama "The Great Debates" | Finalist at National Press Photographers' Pageant 1957 | ||||
| Bette Lieb | Chicago | Dramatic Monologue from Romeo and Juliet | Competed as Miss Chicago | |||||
| 1956 | Tillie Micheletto | Collinsville | Vocal | |||||
| Sandra Jean Stuart | Chicago | Water Ballet Video Presentation | Top 10 | Competed as Miss Chicago | ||||
| 1955 | Marian Cox | Oak Park | Vocal "If I Loved You" | |||||
| Florence Gallagher | Chicago | Semi-classical Vocal "Love Is Where You Find It" | 2nd runner-up | Competed as Miss Chicago | ||||
| 1954 | Patsy Bruce | Fairfield | Drama | Miss Congeniality | ||||
| Regina Dombeck | Chicago | Dramatic Monologue from Mary of Scotland by Maxwell Anderson | Top 10 | Competed as Miss Chicago, Finalist at National Press Photographers' Pageant 1954 | ||||
| 1953 | Jacquie Dumbauld | Alton | Piano / Dance | |||||
| Carol Segermark | Chicago | Vocal | Competed as Miss Chicago | |||||
| 1952 | Glenna Pohly | Rock Falls | Flute | |||||
| Jo Hoppe | Chicago | Tap Dance | 4th runner-up | Preliminary Swimsuit Award | Competed as Miss Chicago | |||
| 1951 | Doris King | Harvey | Dance | |||||
| Adrianne Falcon | Chicago | Vocal & Dance | Top 10 | Competed as Miss Chicago | ||||
| 1950 | Catherine Kleinschmidt | Granite City | Vocal "Come to the Fair" | |||||
| Marjorie Adams | Chicago | Monologue "To the Lovely Margaret" | Top 16 | Competed as Miss Chicago | ||||
| 1949 | Trudi Germi | Chicago | Classical Vocal "Mon cœur s'ouvre à ta voix" | 2nd runner-up | Preliminary Swimsuit Award | |||
| Teresa Giorgian | Chicago | Vocal "Jealousy" | Top 15 | Competed as Miss Chicago | ||||
| 1948 | Viola Hutmacher | Quincy | Classical Vocal "Italian Street Song" | |||||
| Lois Nettleton | Chicago | Dramatic Monologue from Saint Joan | Top 15 | Competed as Miss Chicago | ||||
| 1947 | Maree Evans | Joliet | Dress Design & Art | |||||
| Joan Hiatt | Chicago | Vocal "Kiss In the Dark" | Competed as Miss Chicago | |||||
| 1946 | Patricia Frye | Pekin | Vocal / Tap Dance "I Don't Know Why I Love You Like I Do" | Top 16 | ||||
| Cloris Leachman | Chicago | Comic Sketch "One Man Radio Program" | Top 16 | Competed as Miss Chicago | ||||
| 1945 | Beverly Long | Joliet | ||||||
| Lee Wieland | Chicago | Monologue "A Lesson With a Fan" | Top 13 | Preliminary Swimsuit Award | Competed as Miss Chicago | |||
| 1944 | Betty King | Bloomington | Acrobatic Dance "Stardust" | |||||
| Elaine Steinbach | Chicago | Vocal "You'll Never Know" | 3rd runner-up | Competed as Miss Chicago | ||||
| 1943 | Dorothy Kohrt | Ottawa | ||||||
| Marjorie Nelson | Chicago | Rhythmic Ballet | Top 10 | Competed as Miss Chicago | ||||
| 1942 | Patricia Hayes | Rochelle | Dramatic Recitation | Top 10 | ||||
| Bette Brunk | Chicago | Hula "Hawaiian War Chant" | 1st runner-up | Preliminary Swimsuit Award | Competed as Miss Chicago | |||
| 1939 | Ethel Lodbell | Chicago | Monologue "From the Diary of a Contestant" | Top 15 | Competed as Miss Chicago | |||
| 1936 | Virginia Moeller | Springfield | ||||||
| Genevieve Anderson | Chicago | Competed as Miss Chicago | ||||||
| Arlene Causey | Chicago | 3rd runner-up | Best Model | Competed as Miss Cook County | ||||
| 1933 | Lillian Kroner | 18 | Disqualified because she resided in St. Louis | |||||
| 1927 | Lois Delander | Joliet | 16 | Winner | Other contestants from Illinois were: Myrtle Valsted, Miss Chicago; Gladys Vile, Miss Danville; and Anna G. Bernard, Miss Springfield | |||
| 1926 | No Miss Illinois | Mae Greene competed as Miss Chicago. | ||||||
| 1925 | No Miss Illinois | Representing Illinois were: Margarita Gonzales, Miss Chicago; and Lucille Burns, Miss Elgin | ||||||
| 1924 | No Miss Illinois | Margaret Leigh, Miss Chicago, placed 4th runner-up. Also representing Illinois was Virginia Lipscomb, Miss Decatur. | ||||||
| 1923 | No Miss Illinois | Corinne Dellefield competed as Miss Chicago. | ||||||
| 1922 | No Miss Illinois | Georgia Hale competed as Miss Chicago. | ||||||
* succeeded to the title after Miss Illinois won Miss America
References
- ↑ "Miss Windy City crowned Miss Illinois". The Southern. July 3, 2011.
- ↑ Gier, Nancy (2007-07-01). "Downstater crowned Miss Illinois". Daily Herald. Retrieved 2007-07-01.
- ↑ "People Potpurri". The Bulletin. Aug 16, 1979.
- ↑ "Shanna McNeill talks about her short reign as Miss Illinois.".
External links
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