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Monday, July 29, 2019

Who Had Them Before Me?

Circa 1920s-1930s composition dolls, 27- and 29-inches tall, respectively. The boy's suit, tie, and shirt were tailor-made by a former doting collector. After he arrived here, this doting collector had the wool suit dry cleaned.  The girl was dressed in this infant-size dress and matching headband after she arrived.  It had been worn by another doll that arrived before her.


Who had them before me and what was their purpose?  Were they played with or purchased as a collectible?  Were they loved and appreciated?

I think I've written about this before... wondering in whose hands or in how many hands my preowned dolls have been prior to arriving here.  Knowing a doll's provenance is important; however, sometimes, based on the doll's age, that is impossible. 

One of the reasons I wrote, The Doll Blogs, When Dolls Speak, I Listen was to document the chosen dolls' experiences with me and the origin of their acquisition.  Their source and experience(s) here with me, partially document their existence in the doll world.

This circa 1870s black couple was a gift from Elizabeth Darrah, whose great-grandmother made the dolls.  Her great-grandmother, Frances "Fanny" Skinner Henry was born in 1849.  Members of the Skinner Henry family were active abolitionists, according to Ms. Darrah.

I have an extensive collection of dolls that date back to the late 1800s.  These include, among others, dolls made of cloth, bisque, composition, rubber, and hard plastic mediums.  I am especially fond of dolls from the mid-1950s, most of which are made of hard plastic, which was popular in doll making during that decade.   My 1950s dolls originated from US and European manufacturers.  Most European doll makers used the darkest coloring for their dolls as illustrated in this group photo of a variety of dolls from England, Ireland, and New Zealand, while American-made dolls, like Madame Alexander Cynthia, were usually medium brown in color.
  
I am also just as fond of the dolls made before I was born.  Those from the 1930s (and prior, like the lovely couple in the first photograph) represent the era of my mother's doll playing years, although I am sure most of her dolls were hand made.  The popular medium used for manufactured dolls in the 1930s was composition, a mixture of sawdust, glue and other materials that were compressed together to create a sturdy composite.

Recently, one of the members of my doll group asked, "Do you ever wonder about who may have originally owned your antique or vintage dolls?"

I answered, "With every vintage doll I acquire, I often wonder about her previous owners and what 'life' she led before she reached me." To reiterate, for all dolls, vintage-to-modern that I purchase on the secondary market whose origins are unknown, I wonder about their provenance.

These are both 9-inch Topsy-type dolls, standing and seated.  Both have three holes bored in their heads through which tufts of hair or braids extend.  Named after the character in Uncle Tom's Cabin or Life Among the Lowly by Harriet Beecher Stowe, the name Topsy was frequently used for black dolls manufactured during the late 1800s through the 1960s.

A day after the above question was posed, I received an email from someone seeking identification and value for a black doll she inherited.  The doll in question was a circa 1930s 9-inch composition black baby with three tufts of hair.  The owner was told by a family member that "the doll was very racist and was called a 'beater' baby because it was given to the children so they would play with it instead of the more expensive white dolls back in the day." 

Until receipt of that email, I had never in my lifetime heard of a doll referred to as a "beater" baby or a doll that was specifically used for abuse.

__________

These Feel Better Dolls were pulled from the shelves of a New Jersey store because they are considered racist.

The above text regarding a doll's provenance and "beater baby" dolls was written in early 2011.  It had been kept in draft mode since that time.  I decided to publish now after reading about the "Feel Better Dolls" that were recently pulled from a New Jersey store following customer complaints that the doll is racist.  It encourages people to whack the doll "on a wall" to release their frustrations (and feel better, as the label on the doll's stomach instructs).  Because the doll is black and because dolls represent people, rightfully so the doll is highly inappropriate.  In addition to urging people to use the doll for battering, the doll's yarn hair colors of red, green, yellow, and black are closely related to the red, green, gold, and black colors of the Rastafarian flag (gold is often mistaken by non-Rastafarians as yellow).  Red, green, and yellow are the flag colors of many African nations, specifically Ghana.

While the doll came in two other fabric body colors (green and yellow), who in their right mind thought this concept was a good idea?

When I ended the original blog some 8 years ago, I wrote, "Have you ever heard of a beater baby?"  If you too read about the Feel Better Doll, I, unfortunately, know the answer to this question.


dbg

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6 comments:

  1. It is true that, whenever it possible to do so, knowing about the previous owner of a second-hand doll is nice. It adds more substance and character to the doll.
    I am shocked but not surprised by the Beater Baby dolls and the Feel Better dolls. I am not going to ask the famous 'who in their right mind thought that these concepts were good ideas?' because unfortunately (and contrary to what they would like us to think) they were in their right mind when they came up with those ideas. I am just glad that not everybody is insensitive enough to find those dolls fine.
    Thank you for the enlightening post as always.

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    1. As always, thank you for taking time to read and comment, Arlette.

      This doll was not a very well thought out concept, but it will become a collectible because of the controversy.

      dbg

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  2. OMG, I had never heard of a "beater doll." Not only is it difficult to think of the context within it was designed, but it is difficult to face given my own rapport with dolls. That said, I am happy you posted this and brought this to our attention. Like slave ships and WWII memorabilia, these make up a difficult part of history that needs to be recognized and documented. It should not be tossed out, ignored, lest people of today deny its existance.
    Since I'm different kind of collector---my dolls being modern fashion dolls--I don't have the same reflections with regard to who owned the doll before me. But a friend did raise another point of reflection..... what happens to my collection after I'm gone!

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    1. I asked myself that same question today, "What will happen to my dolls after I'm gone?" This was followed by, "Should I stop buying now?" I have drastically reduced the number of dolls I buy, but to totally stop, I'm not sure that's possible, at least not right now. Because no one else in the family has an interest in my dolls, I do wonder what will happen to them. I have also wondered what has happened to the dolls that belonged to friends who are no longer in the earth realm. It does give you something to think about.

      With reference to the "beater baby" dolls, I don't think dolls were manufactured for that purpose. These were dolls that adults allowed children to play with because they viewed them as less valuable than others. Which is still a sad thought.

      dbg

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  3. I have black doll which belong to my mother in the 1920’s. I loved this doll but sadly over 70 years ago I dropped her and the China head broke. I was devastated so my mum, the patient lady that she was, made a new head out of one of my Dads socks. I know in todays world this sound hilarious but after the war years they were big into make do and mend.
    I would so love to have her restored. Please get in touch if anyone knows where I could get a new head from.
    I have photos of her from 1920 and some of the original clothes.

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    1. Thank you for sharing your doll's story. Try searching "doll repair or restoration" and include your location in the search. Finding someone close to your location is always best. I would not want to mail a doll to a stranger for repair unless they were a reputable company with references. Good luck.

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