INSIDE LUCY THE ELEPHANT
The Pachyderm You Can Walk Through

	With legs as wide as strairwells and a body cavity as broad as a living room, Lucy has previously served as a restaurant, hotel, bar, business office and beach cottage.

spacer Lucy the Elephant is open daily for tours led by knowledgeable docents. Entry is gained through the ten-foot-diameter rear legs. Each has a door (above, left) and a set of spiral stairs that climb into the main body cavity. Both stairwells enter beyond the balustrade visible at the far, rump end of the main room (above, right--this interior photo was taken from inside Lucy's head). The two center doors open into another set of stairwells that climb into the patio-sized howdah on Lucy's back for a panoramic view of sky and surf. Museum in the Belly The main room now contains a few historical exhibits; its walls are open and uninsulated, exposing the curious wooden superstructure. Fundraising programs are underway to finance a comprehensive interior renovation that would turn the elephant's belly into a high-quality museum of shore history and lore. Not a Square Room in the Bunch Lucy's interior space has been rebuilt several times during the last century. It originally contained an office and tiny restaurant where real estate sales prospects were entertained by James Lafferty, the original builder. Interested parties could climb into the howdah and view the surrounding plots of sand being offering for sale. After Lafferty sold Lucy, the main room was revamped to serve as a small hotel for beach borders. In 1902, an affluent physician fitted out Lucy as a private beach cottage with a kitchen, bedrooms, dining room, proper parlor and a tiny bathroom squeezed into a shoulder void. Later, the interior space was reconfigured as a tavern room where inebriated partrons had to be constantly cautioned not to knock over the oil lanterns that created light, atmosphere and a serious potential fire hazard in New Jersey's most peculiar seaside bar. Admission fee: Adults $4.00, Children $3.00 Address: 9200 Atlantic Avenue, Margate, NJ 08402 Location: Corner of Decatur and Atlantic Avenues, Margate Phone: 609-823-6473 Donations to: SAVE LUCY COMMITTEE, Inc., P.O. Box 3336, Margate, NJ 08402 Return to main Lucy page. All Rights Reserved © 1998 - 2004, Hoag Levins HoagL@earthlink.net .