Miss Subways Reunite to Celebrate New Book

Shirley Martin with her Miss Subway poster.

Former Miss Subways gathered with their families in Ellen’s Stardust Diner to toast the launch of the new book “Meet Miss Subways: New York’s Beauty Queens 1941-76.”

The Miss Subways contest was a program launched by New York Subways Advertising in 1941. The New York City woman that won the contest would appear on posters in NYC Subways. A new winner was chosen every few months until 1976.  

Of the 200 total women who won Miss Subway, around 60 are still living and well enough to travel. Around 30 former winners were at the event. The oldest attendee was Ruth Mate, who won Miss Subway in 1942.

Owner of the Stardust Diner Ellen Hart was herself a Miss Subway in 1959. The diner features a collection of Miss Subway posters on the windows.

“I was a Miss Subway so I decided to start hanging the posters up, this was 1982,” said Hart, “after that we just kept having reunions and collecting posters from the women.”

Author Fiona Gardner attended one of these reunions. After seeing Hart’s Miss Subway posters and meeting the Miss Subways, Gardner decided to turn their stories into a book. Funded by KickStarter, Gardner wrote “Meet the Miss Subways.”

All the former beauty queens brought the poster version of themselves that hung in the subways decades ago. Each one was given Miss Subway sashes to wear and looked just as glamorous as they had in black and white.

Event organizers collected donations from the guests, all proceeds from the reunion were used to purchase metro cards for victims of Hurricane Sandy.

Not every attendee was a Miss Subway. Patty and Jeff Barnett came with a poster of their mother won Miss Subway in 1943. “We’re here to represent her memory,” said Patty.

When the final photo of all the former winners was taken, organized made sure the poster of Patty and Jeff’s mother was included. “It’s the sisterhood of Miss Subways,” said Hart.

In addition to the book, there will also be a Meet the Miss Subways exhibition at the New York Transit Museum from October 23 to March 25.