Ouch, This One Hurts: ‘Lucy The Elephant’ Just Lost $ 500,000

The exterior of “Lucy The Elephant,” in Margate City, New Jersey has been restored to better than new, with state of the art materials and super paint.

The 1882 iconic landmark currently needs an interior update. They thought they had $ 500,000 to get the job done.

Just like that … the money is now gone. In a public letter released by the executive director of “Lucy,” they’re blaming the United States Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) for taking the money back.

Rich Helfant didn’t hold back.

By now you may have seen the disappointing news that the $500,000 in U.S. Senate discretionary funds generously gifted to Lucy by Senator Cory Booker last August has been abruptly rescinded by the Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE. All of us at Lucy—as well as Senator Booker-are stunned by the sudden breach of contract, which would've funded most of the cost of our long-planned and much-needed interior restoration, including the installation of a new, state-of-the-art fire suppression system inside Lucy, said Rich Helfant, Executive Director of Lucy The Elephant.

To be fair and accurate, had the money for “Lucy” been realized, it would have been through the generosity of the American taxpaying public … not gifted by Booker.

You cannot escape politics anywhere in American society these days … even in a letter written by an executive director of a non profit organization.

“Lucy the Elephant” is a more than 60-feet tall, elephant-shaped wood frame and tin clad building, that was built in Margate City, New Jersey 143 years ago by James V. Lafferty.

It was built to promote real estate sales and to attract tourism to the region.

What Lafferty couldn’t possibly have known at the time was that he created one of the great structural marvels of the 19th Century, which has now gone on to become a historical national landmark.

Lucy is also recognized as the oldest roadside attraction in America.

Lafferty had a dream that if he built a colossal wooden Elephant, that people could actually be able to walk inside of and observe the surrounding area from 65 feet above the ground it would help attract potential customers for his real estate holdings for sale in the region.

Don Hurley has taken some great photos of Lucy The Elephant through the years. Below, are a few great looks at Lucy.

Here is a copy of the Rich Helfant letter in its entirety. Helfant posted it on the Lucy The Elephant Facebook page, yesterday.

A quick word about this photo:

The above Don Hurley photo is my favorite all-time photo of Lucy The Elephant.

It was taken at nighttime, with extraordinary lighting that was provided by Atlantic City Electric, to the tune of 100,000 candle watts of power for this one special evening.

These lighting conditions will most likely never be duplicated, ever again. It’s the only lighting that has ever shown that Lucy has blue eyes.