Some of us are creeped out by dolls. As a child, I never kept any of my dolls in my bedroom at night. As an adult, I dare those buggers to come alive just so I could have something to stomp on after a stressful day of writing.
1. The Uncle Sam Doll
In 1916, people were worried that the little girls from poor families would not be able to get dolls come the Christmas season. This was because most of the dolls being sold in the United States were made in Germany and the high cost of importing them made the dolls too costly for the working class. In an effort to ensure little girls across the country could get an inexpensive doll, a group of Americans began making Uncle Sam dolls to try and charm the hearts of little girls. Never mind that it almost looks like Billy the Puppet in the Saw movies. [1]
2. Neutrality Jim
Neutrality Jim was a character doll for adult women back in 1915. The gig was to dress Neutrality Jim in different character costumes, such as a cowboy or a Dutch boy, that would color match the woman’s outfits. These dolls were then carried about town and taken out on lunches and dinners. [2]
3. Doll Fashion Model
A five-year-old girl was used to model the clothing sold for Neutrality Jim. It was her job to both pose and act as a doll. [3]
4. Doll Heads
In this photo are American made doll heads. The doll heads wait here in the “Beauty Room” (a pre-Chucky horror scene) until the workers are ready to take them, trim off the shoulders, and fit them onto their cloth bodies. In 1916, the Americans were extremely proud of their abilities to create lifelike doll heads. [4]
5. Betsy Doll
The Betsy Doll had all the bells and whistles that every girl wanted back in 1922. She had open and shut eyes and jointed legs so she could get up and walk around the house at night. [5]
6. Serbian Husband
Of course, if you were living in Serbia back in 1912 and you wanted a husband, all you had to do was hang a doll in your window to let the village bachelors know you were shopping for a mate. [6]
7. Rag Doll People
It looked like something out of a 1970s cheap experimental horror flick and, of course, it happened in California. It was 1900 when a church lady decided it would be fun to gather up over fifty local children and spend two weeks teaching them how to act like rag dolls. After that, she had the children dress like all the different rag dolls made at that time and put on a show. The photo is an actual picture of some of the rag doll costumes. [7]
