Lucy the Elephant 1881 novelty house survived Sandy

Elephanttttt BB pal Todd Lappin reports:

Last night, tropical story Sandy made landfall approximately 5 miles southwest of Atlantic City, NJ. That means Sandy came ashore in Margate, NJ, on the exact site of Lucy the Elephant -- a charming 19th century house built in the shape of a gigantic circus elephant. Lucy has survived the ravages of time for more than 120 years, but she sits just a block off the beach in Margate, so things did not look good for the old girl when Sandy struck. This morning, however, Patrick Armstrong took a photo of the site which revealed that Lucy the Elephant survived — and more or less intact. Incredible.

David Pescovitz is Boing Boing's co-editor/managing partner. He's also a research director at Institute for the Future. On Instagram, he's @pesco.

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http://pulse.yahoo.com/_RF6KIZL33HXKRAHHJPTKXMFHNU russ

Offshore bootleggers used the Elephant as a signal point to come to shore.
DreadJester

She looks similar to the elephant house in Moulin Rouge.
SomeGuyNamedMark

This will lead to a boom in elephant shaped hurricane resistant homes.
- http://www.facebook.com/john.jingleheimerschmidt.1447 John Jacob Jingleheimerschmidt
  
  Way ahead of you.
Ramone

She’s better protected than you might think. From Lucy’s Facebook page:
1. Lucy has weathered everything mother nature has sent her way for more than 131 years.
2. She is a stronger structure today than she was in 1962 during the March storm. Her main ‘superstructure’ is now steel; it was wood in 1962.
3. She is farther back from the shore line than she was in 1962.
4. Lucy’s Beach Grille building sits directly in front of her. It will bear the brunt of the wave action and serve as a barrier for Lucy.
wabernat

They don’t build giant whimsical pachyderm structures like they used to.
http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=13305412 Devin Smith

I just saw this on Boardwalk Empire! http://i.imgur.com/yuA66.jpg
http://twitter.com/footnotesrising Susan Garfinkel

Thanks for letting us know! Lucy was one of three novelty elephant buildings created by James Lafferty in the 1880s–And he patented his design! See http://www.google.com/patents?vid=268503. I’m not certain if Lucy ever functioned as a private home, but she was intended as a tourist attraction.
Wikipedia has good info on Lucy and the larger Coney Island Elephant that burned within a few years: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lucy_the_Elephant; http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elephantine_Colossus.
http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1322306050 Vicky Rector

She was a hotel, not a house. Sorry to split hairs… but it’s always been a tourist trap. Anyway – I’m so happy she made it! Now I won’t be able to get the song out of my head!
Paul Renault

The reason she survived is because Thomas Edison wasn’t nearby…
http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100000054542023 Denise Fazekas

I’m so glad that Lucy made it I remember her as a little girl. We would vacation there in a hotel next door in the 60′s. I Love Lucy!
http://www.facebook.com/linda.vitas Linda Vitas

I too am glad Lucy made .. I remember playing inside her during the the 50′s when she was deserted and I also stayed in a hotel next door as a kid …