February 8, 2026, Meeting

Elaine gave a program on cowboy and Indian dolls. She talked about growing up in the 1940s playing cowboys as portrayed in popular culture, but explained that the way the cowboys were depicted in Hollywood is a myth. Elaine said that the cowboy traditional began in Texas after the Texas revolution, when Hispanic ranchers and farmers abandoned their cattle as they were forced to immigrate to Mexico. Hands were hired to round up the stray cattle and drive them to market. However in 1883,  Buffalo Bill Cody's Wild West show created the myth of the cowboy as a noble savior of the wild west. Elaine noted that although 40 percent of the cowboys were Black or Hispanic, on television and in the movies cowboy stars such as Tom Mix, Gene Aubrey, Roy Rogers, and the Lone Ranger portrayed cowboys as a white man protecting civilization from savage Indians. By the 1940s, every American composition doll company had introduced a cowboy doll.

Elaine displayed a number of cowboy dolls from her collection. The composition boy in the back row wearing a red checked shirt and chaps is "Baby Grumpy" by Effanbee. Just to his right in the front is a yellow and white oilcloth doll by the Atlanta Novelty Company and the little tan doll is "Wild Bill," a cloth chew toy. To the far right of the picture, the cloth doll in the front with the checked shirt and red bandana was made from a commercial doll pattern first issued in the 1940s. Just behind him, in the blue shirt and straw hat, is a cloth cowboy made from an Edith Flack Ackley pattern. The tall cowboy in the brown vest and checked shirt behind him has a cloth body also made from an Ackley pattern, but he has a painted wooden head. To the right of the Ackley cowpoke in the blue shirt is a cowboy in brown and tan with a head made from a nut. Behind him, handsome in blue and white, is an all-wooden cowboy carved by Austin artist Nancy Grobe. In front of the pair is a Hitty doll carved by Connie Hardt and dressed as Davy Crockett. One can't play cowboys without Indians, and Elaine shared a number of dolls representing Native Americans. To the far left of the picture are two painted cloth Native American dolls created in the 1930s under the Work Progress Administration, or WPA. In front of the is a tiny bisque nodder doll by the German firm of Hertwig and Company.

 Elaine explained that Native American dolls were often made either as play dolls or tourist souvenirs.  The two cone-shaped dolls on the left of the picture were made by the Seminole tribe out of cloth and palmetto fibers. Elaine said that the older dolls have clothing made from appliqué, while newer versions are decorated with rick-rack. The cloth doll in blue in the center is dressed as a traditional Navajo woman and in front of her is a tiny birch bark canoe. The wooden doll, representing a Native American child, was carved by Connie Hardt.

On the left of the picture are two dolls with carved wooden heads that represent Northeastern tribes. Behind them is a cloth doll that may have been made from an Ackley pattern. The composition baby in yellow felt was from Madame Hendren, a trade name used by the American Averill Manufacturing Company. Next to him, in orange cloth, is a Native American character by the British doll maker, Norah Wellings.

In this picture, the flat colorful cloth doll is actually an oven mitt modeled after a Hopi Kachina. The two seated clay figurines are Pueblo storytellers and the porcelain Indian in the feathered headdress is a bell that was made in Japan. The brown doll captioned "Alice's Baby" was commercially made as an early teething toy for infants.

Members shared some of their Western-themed dolls. Jenell Howell displayed this cute 1955 cowgirl outfit made for Ginny by he Vogue Doll Company, 

as well as this 1952 Ginny in her original Native American outfit.

She also shared this Mary Hoyer hard plastic doll in a hand-knitted outfit representing a South American cowboy known as a "gaucho."

Bette Birdsong brought two Gene dolls in glamorous cowgirl garb.

Sylvia McDonald brought several dolls. The man in the horned headdress in the back represents a Plains Indian doll and dates from the 1930s. The plastic doll in the blue velvet blouse and red skirt was given to Sylvia by her brother in the 1950s and represents a Navajo woman. To her right is another Navajo doll, made out of cloth. In the front is Woody from the "Toy Story" franchise and a Seminole doll that Sylvia told the club is around 75 years old.

David Craig told the club that he didn't have any cowboy or Indian dolls, so he brought two dolls decked out in red and white for Valentine's Day. This blond belle is by JAMIEshow USA and is dressed in an outfit for Gene.

This lady in red is by the Phoenix, Arizona company of D.A.E. Originals.

Lynda Eitel displayed this Navajo woman doll that she had made, 

as well as a number of Western miniatures.

Ann Meier shared these Skookum dolls. Designed by Mary McAboy, these Native American souvenir dolls were from 1913 through the 1960s. They are known for having blanket-wrapped bodies with no arms and molded composition or plastic faces with side-glancing eyes. 

Sharon Weintraub displayed several German bisque examples. This all-bisque cowgirl and her little Indian companion are by Hertwig. 

This all-original Native American character doll is by Bahr and Proschild. The head is incised “244” on the back.

Created by Gebruder Heubach, this doll is based on a real Native American woman, popularly known as "Princess Angeline." Her name was actually Kikisoblu and she was the eldest daughter of Chief Seattle, leader of the Suquamish and Duwamish peoples on the West Coast. In 1855, when the Duwamish Indians were forced to leave their land for reservations, she insisted on remaining in Seattle, living in a small cabin and supporting herself by doing laundry and selling handwoven baskets.

November 10, 2024, Meeting

In keeping with the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday, many members brought dolls representing Native Americans. This papoose in a pink felt cradleboard belongs to member Myrna Loesch. The cold-painted bisque baby was dressed by Madame Hendren, which was part of the part of the Averill Manufacturing Corporation, and dates from 1916 through the 1920s. Myrna said that a handwritten note found with the doll read, "In Lucy Brown's keepsake box packed up in Pittsburgh 1927."

Member Elaine Jackson brought two pairs of cloth dolls to illustrate the myth of the First Thanksgiving at Plymouth Massachusetts in 1621. The first pair, representing Priscilla Mullins and John Standish, appeared earlier on this blog. The dolls, dating around 1950, have pressed and painted faces and are from Just Folks Doll House by Helen Walker of Staunton, Virginia.

The second pair were a Native American boy and girl, made by the Michigan WPA Toy Project, sponsored by Michigan State College. Dating around 1939, the dolls were made using the Edith Flack Ackley cloth doll pattern. They are have painted features, rather than the embroidered features used for the Ackley pattern and are all original. Elaine noted that the dolls' costumes are not representative of the Wampanoag Tribe (who also called themselves the People of the First Light), who were the indigenous people who greeted the Pilgrims.

Member Sylvia McDonald, who was the hostess for the meeting, shared several Native American dolls. The man in the elaborately beaded buckskin outfit represents a Plains Indian. Sylvia said that he appears to be of either carved wood or treated cloth and came with a tag denoting him as, “Circa 1930’s.”  The woman doll was purchased for her by her brothers, John and Larry, in Taos at a shop in 1954 or 1955. Of hard plastic, she is dressed in a traditional Navajo costume.

This homemade cloth Indian family were sewn made by a friend’s niece when Sylvia was around eight or nine years old.  She said that they were some of the first dolls that she considered a part of her collection.

This trio belongs to Member Bette Birdsong. The woman wearing a navy wool dress, which was typical of her tribe, and the man on the right, are reproductions of dolls made by the Crow. The doll with the heavily beaded bodice, which was characteristic of the Sioux, is an antique. The beadwork includes tiny images of American flags. 

Member Jenell Howell brought a complete set of composition Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs dolls in what appears to be their original presentation box. These dolls were issued by the Knickerbocker Toy Company to coincide with the 1937 release of Disney's first animated feature. All of the dolls are in excellent condition and Jenell said that there was speculation is that this set might have been a salesman's sample.

Returning to a seasonal theme, Member Jan Irsfeld displayed two Madame Alexander Cissy dolls from a series issued over four years, starting 2005. The dolls were inspired by the Pompadour period, when French fashion was an its height, and the dolls were dressed in clothing representing the four seasons. This pair represents Fall and Jan made the man's knee-high suede hunting boots.

Another example of Jan's terrific tailoring and dazzling beading skills.

Member Nancy Countryman shared this 17-inch tall composition doll. The doll has sleeping blue eyes and two teeth, but no markings.           

                                           

She also brought a homemade cloth gray mouse dressed in fall colors. A clear glass mason jar serves as this doll's body. 

Member Pam Hardy brought these miniature porcelain Yolanda Bello dolls from the Picture Perfect Babies Collection by The Ashton Drake Galleries.  The boy dressed in a baseball outfit is Matthew and the girl’s name is Jennifer. 

 

A big thank you to Member Ann Meier and Sylvia for providing the pictures and information!