Stubble’s No Trouble at Cape May Party

Some towns celebrate the Fourth of July with parades and fireworks. That’s true for Cape May, but this year they’re planning even more of a blast that day to mark the town’s 400th’ birthday. The main attraction: a beard-growing competition.

Contestants from Cape May's 350th annual "Frolic of the Beards" competition in 1959.

Photo courtesy Chamber of Commerce of Cape May.

The "Frolic of the Beards" will take place July 4 – though competitors have been getting into bearded shape since the winter. Awards will be given for Most Authentic-Looking Beard (Henry Hudson Style); Longest Beard; Best Overall Beard (neat, well-groomed, balanced); and Scraggliest Beard.

Goatees and full beards are eligible, but mustache-only need not apply. Judges include local barbers and stylists, plus actors who portray Victorian-era townspeople at the Emlen Physick Estate, a grand restored Victorian home in town that’s open for tours.

Why beards? To recreate the fine and sometimes wacky facial hair that men sported in Cape May in 1609, hence the most authentic-looking beard category. It made for silly summer fun in 1959—when the town celebrated birthday number 350 with a similar contest—and looks like it will in 2009. Last week, I witnessed a few Cape May locals getting ready for beard judgment day.

The competition begins at 5 pm on the Fourth at the Rotary Park Bandstand at Lafayette and Decatur streets. For more information, and to register, go to capemay400.info.

Tags: Cape May | Fourth of July | beards