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Paper Doll collection

Call Number

PR 161

Date

circa 1850-1953, inclusive

Creator

New-York Historical Society

Extent

2 Linear feet (2 boxes)

Language of Materials

This collection is primarily visual. Any text is likely to be in English.

Abstract

The collection contains both commercially printed and hand-made paper dolls.

Historical Note

The precursor to paper dolls were the French pantins, human figures printed with detached limbs meant to be re-attached with string. Paper dolls as we know them today, human figures with changeable costumes, were first manufactured in England in the late 18th century. The earliest paper dolls printed in America were made in the early 19th century. By the 1870s, paper dolls had become quite popular in the United States; production of sets of dolls increased as their popularity grew and as chromolithography made color printing more cost effective. Paper dolls were made and sold by commercial firms both for children to play with and for adults to observe current fashion trends. Women's magazines and newspaper supplements often included cutouts of paper dolls and/or their clothes.

Arrangement

Sets of dolls are foldered together and are arranged by size.

Scope and Contents

The Paper Doll Collection spans the period from ca. 1850 to 1953 and contains both commercially produced and handmade paper dolls. Dolls in the collection were produced in both Europe and the United States. Sets of dolls, most of which have a distinct provenance, are kept together. Dolls are arranged by size.

Two Jenny Lind paper dolls and their accompanying dresses were made in Germany ca. 1850. The two dolls are quite similar, with only slight differences in facial features and tilt of the head. The clothing illustrates costumes worn by Lind in many of her featured roles.

Three folders hold a notable element of the collection, a large set of handmade paper clothes for paper dolls. Some of the dolls were cut from newspaper illustrations, and others were commercially manufactured paper dolls. The dolls often have names and ages of characters written on the verso. Some clothes were also cut from newsprint, but most were handmade using collages of different colors, patterns, and weights of paper, and sometimes tissue or lace doilies. The clothing is extremely detailed. Women's dresses often have matching purses attached to the dresses. Clothes made for a specific doll have been matched with that doll when possible, and are stored together in an envelope. Many of the outfits do not seem to correspond to the surviving dolls. The Victorian-style clothing fashions date the dolls from between 1880 and 1900.

A set of 36 paper dresses for a woman paper doll were originally printed in the Sunday supplement to the Boston Sunday Herald throughout 1895 and 1896. Sports costumes, evening and afternoon dresses in various fashions of the moment are included.

"Lady Edith" includes one doll and three outfits with matching hats. This set was issued in 1894 by London printers Raphael Tuck & Sons, the major English producer of paper dolls, for sale in the United States. One sheet contains a brightly colored doll and clothes—not cut out—entitled "Polly's Paper Playmates: Cousin Janet at an afternoon tea." The sheet was a supplement to the New York Sunday American in 1911. One folder includes die cut paper furniture for the paper dolls. The patterns for an armchair and bureau are uncut; the envelope they were sold in is also included. The envelope text reads: "The Girl's Delight: Paper Furniture (No. 1) for Paper Dolls." "The Girls' Delight" was a series of paper dolls printed in ca. 1857 by Clark, Austin & Smith, of 3 Park Row, New York.

Access Restrictions

Materials in this collection may be stored offsite. For more information on making arrangements to consult them, please visit www.nyhistory.org/library/visit.

Use Restrictions

Taking images of documents from the library collections for reference purposes by using hand-held cameras and in accordance with the library's photography guidelines is encouraged. As an alternative, patrons may request up to 20 images per day from staff.

Application to use images from this collection for publication should be made in writing to: Department of Rights and Reproductions, The New-York Historical Society, 170 Central Park West, New York, NY 10024-5194, rightsandrepro@nyhistory.org. Phone: (212) 873-3400 ext. 282.

Copyrights and other proprietary rights may subsist in individuals and entities other than the New-York Historical Society, in which case the patron is responsible for securing permission from those parties. For fuller information about rights and reproductions from N-YHS visit: https://www.nyhistory.org/about/rights-reproductions

Preferred Citation

This collection should be cited as: Paper Doll Collection, PR 161, Department of Prints, Photographs, and Architectural Collections, The New-York Historical Society.

Location of Materials

Materials in this collection may be stored offsite. For more information on making arrangements to consult them, please visit www.nyhistory.org/library/visit.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

The collection was compiled by New-York Historical Society from various sources over time. When the source is known, it is noted at the folder level below.

Separated Materials

This collection previously included two folders of paper dolls from the Nadelman Collection of Folk Art, which were transferred to the New-York Historical Society Museum in 2013.

Related Materials

Pantins, an early precursor of paper dolls, can be found in the Graphic Arts File (PR 022). The New-York Historical Society Museum holds other examples of paper dolls.

Accruals

The collection is open for additional materials to be added over time.

Collection processed by

Jenny Gotwals

About this Guide

This finding aid was produced using ArchivesSpace on 2023-08-21 15:48:13 -0400.
Language: Description is in English.

Repository

New-York Historical Society
New-York Historical Society
170 Central Park West
New York, NY 10024