Last Updated on August 14, 2025 by Matt Staff
Long before beauty contests became big productions on reality TV, they were simple, quirky events that reflected the ideals and fashions of their time. From small-town fairs to national stages, these competitions showcased more than just appearance. They captured the hopes, charm, and shifting roles of women through the decades. Each photo from the past tells a story of its era, offering glimpses into what society once defined as beauty.
Some moments feel glamorous, others amusing or even surprising, but together they paint a vivid picture of how much has changed and how much remains familiar. It’s a look back at a world where pageantry was both performance and tradition, a unique side of history to say the least. Let’s dive into 20 photos of beauty pageants from the past.
1. The world’s most beautiful leg competition, 1951
2. One of the first beauty contests in the U.S., early 1900s
3. The contestants in the 1925 Bathing Beauty Pageant in Huntington Beach, California
4. This is what beauty pageants looked like in the late ’50s
5. A bathing beauty contest, 1929
6. The Miss Hornsea contest, 1961
7. Miss Eva Fridell, being presented with the first-place trophy in the Washington Tidal Basin Beauty Contest, 1922
8. Getting ready for the beauty contest of Southport, 1967
9. The first Miss Universe Pageant ever, 1952
10. Max Factor Jr. showing off the trophy to the Miss Universe Pageant entrants in 1957
11. Backstage at a beauty contest in North Carolina, 1961
12. Winners of the ‘Miss Beautiful Spine’ contest in Chicago, 1950s
13. Beauty contestants in Galveston, Texas, 1920s
14. The three finalists in the Slks National Bathing Beauty contest, Los Angeles, 1935
15. Miss Italy gets knocked onto the ropes by Miss Sweden, 1949
16. Contestants of the Doris Day lookalike contest, 1965
17. The winner of the posture contest, showing off her posture to all the other girls, 1943
18. The Most Beautiful Legs contest in Paris looks dangerous, 1936
19. The Atlantic City Beauty Contest of 1944
20. The Miss War Worker Beauty Contest, 1942
Want to see more content from the 1900s?
Check out 17 Vintage Photos of Fishermen That Perfectly Capture the Past (1900s-1970s), or take a look at 19 Colorized Photos Of Aviators (1900s). Finally, if you want to see Navy photos from the 1900s, check out 20 Vintage Navy Photos From The Past (1930s-1980s).
