A Topsy Doll from the UK

An 11-inch Topsy from Enfield, England, needed repairs.

An 11-inch circa 1930s Topsy arrived from Enfield, England on 07/22/2025 in need of repair. It was offered to me by the daughter of the original owner. It has been her childhood doll. The daughter believes her mother made the doll's dress.

I retrieved the package on 07/28/2025 and began working on the doll the next day. Using her original hand-knit dress, after thoroughly sanitizing and hand-washing it, I gave it "Patrick Kelly" embellishments using buttons from a button tin that my mother gave me several years ago. All necessary doll repairs were completed by 08/01/2025: retouching and sealing missing paint from the head, extremities, eyes, mouth, and teeth, and restringing. Topsy is now incorporated into my collection with similar dolls. The details of the repair are captured in the following video (posted previously on Instagram and Facebook). 

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Three US-sold (and/or made) Topsy dolls pose with the repaired UK Topsy.

Many antique and vintage black dolls made in England and other parts of Europe often had ebony complexions similar to the repaired doll. They obviously sold well there. The repaired doll is my first composition Topsy of this size and complexion, known to be made or sold in the United Kingdom. Most composition Topsy dolls sold in the United States during the same time (1920s-1930s) had light to medium brown skin tones, as illustrated in the group photo above. Except for early 1900s stereotypical dolls sold in the US, merchants must have felt that lighter-complexioned black dolls would sell better here than deeper-complexioned dolls. 

Related Links

Moments in Black Doll History: Topsy Dolls

Patrick Kelly ~ a Son of Ellis Inspired Post

Topsy Dolls Found in Early Sears Catalogs

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