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Doll: "Mollie Bentley" Rendered by Josephine C. Romano (artist), 1936 and Edith Towner (artist) watercolor, graphite, and pen and ink on paper overall: 35.9 x 26.7 cm (14 1/8 x 10 1/2 in.) Original IAD Object: 15 1/2" high Index of American Design 1943.8.8135 |
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Before the Civil War, most American dolls were made at home, and the practice continued much later, in many cases. This rag doll, one of the most popular doll types, is a charming product of home manufacture during the 1880s. Named "Mollie Bentley," this doll was the work of a girl by the same name who lived in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. The doll's body and dress were made of various scraps of materials found about the house. "Mollie's" clothing includes two types of cotton fabric popular in the nineteenth century: calico, a name derived from Calicut, India, where cotton textiles were first printed; and gingham, whose name is of either Malayan or French origin, a fabric that had been used from the early days of the colonies.
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