Dime Store Dolls

“Long ago, little girls visited Dime Stores and lingered longingly in front of the shelves of dolls dressed in taffeta and lace. Though they were not the quality of department store dolls, little girls cherished them just the same. Not only has Jane Foster captured the essence of the Dime Store experience in her new book, Dime Store Dolls, but she describes the dolls so well that I feel I am once again that little girl wishing for a very special doll. Thank you, Jane, for writing a book that not only provides a wonderful history lesson, but also tugs at my heart.”

—Donna W. Brown-Retired, school librarian, authored articles for Antique Doll Collector Magazine, Doll Collector Magazine, Miniature Collector Magazine, and is a columnist for The Hammonton Gazette “Reading Dime Store Dolls is truly a walk down memory lane. As a child growing up in 1950 Burbank, California, I fondly remember saving my allowance (a nickel a week) so I could treat myself to a treasure at Neff ’s Five and Dime. Through Jane’s words I can once again visualize the magic the aisles held for my childhood eyes. Dolls were my friends…whether from Santa or from the Dime Store. As an adult, I continue to love dolls, a love that was nurtured through my Dime Store visits. The Dime Store holds a special place in American history and because of Jane’s book it will not be forgotten.”

—Susan Foreman, owner Once Upon a Tyme, Cambria, CA “Dime Store Dolls brings back lots of memories of my childhood when a visit to Ben Franklin or the Five and Dime was such a treat. You can relive those times as you look at the dolls that were popular then and enjoy the era all over again.”

—Patsy Moyer, from Las Cruces, NM, author of a variety of doll reference publications about vintage dolls and is now active in the study of modern dolls Award winning author, Jane Foster, taught elementary school for 38 years, and then taught reading on a part-time basis at the elementary school level for five years after retirement. She is a member of Risen King Church and the Kanawha Valley Doll Club. Jane’s first children’s book is Dime Store Days and is a Mom’s Choice Award Recipient. She writes doll articles for Antique Doll Magazine, Doll News Magazine, and has written for Doll Collector (formerly Contemporary Doll) Magazine. Jane and her husband live in her native town of Hurricane, West Virginia.

Award-winning author and illustrator, Ashley Teets, is a summa cum laude graduate of Alderson Broaddus College with a B.F.A in visual art with a minor in creative writing. After two semesters of graduate work at West Virginia University she continued her graduate study through the Simmons College satellite graduate program at the Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art in Amherst, Massachusetts. She holds a Masters in Arts Administration through the University of Kentucky and is a graduate of Don Bluth University. Ashley is also a portrait artist, muralist and art instructor. For more information visit www.AshleyBelote.com.

Jane Foster ILLUSTRATED BY

Ashley Teets

Dime Store Dolls

by Jane Foster illustrated by Ashley Teets copyright ©2020 Jane Foster All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any other form or for any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recording or any information storage system, without written permission from Headline Books.

To order additional copies of this book, or for book publishing information, or to contact the author: Headline Kids P. O. Box 52 Terra Alta, WV 26764 Tel: 304-789-3001 Email: mybook@headlinebooks.com www.headlinebooks.com Published by Headline Books Headline Kids is an imprint of Headline Books ISBN-13: 9781946664808 Library of Congress Control Number: 2019946989

PR I N T E D I N T H E U N I T E D STAT E S OF A M E R IC A

This book is dedicated to my heavenly father and the earthly parents he gave me. (Psalm 103:13)

Acknowledgments I would like to express my gratitude to some very helpful ladies Donna W. Brown, Julie Patrie, and members of The Kanawha Valley Doll Club who have been so willing to share with me during the writing of this book. I was encouraged by Carol J. Stover who shared a remembrance with me about how she received a “special doll” for Christmas from Woolworth’s one year. Carol’s book, Small Dolls of the 40s and 50s was a very helpful resource. These ladies have given of their time, knowledge of the 1950-1960s doll era and provided pictures of their dolls and doll-related items.

Also of great assistance were the employees of Berdine’s Five and Dime Variety store, located in Harrisville, WV, who provided some authentic and picturesque views of a dime store that is still in business providing older adults with a “step back in time” and children with a little “piece of antiquity.”

To denote a special personal memory my mother shared with me about a trip she and my dad once made to Charleston WV to find a particular doll for me that was very popular and hard to find at that time. I was very young and accompanied my parents on this trip. As my mom was recalling and telling this story she remarked, “Your dad carried you all over the streets of Charleston.” On this shopping excursion in Charleston, WV we would have had occasion to pass by more than one dime store.

Woolworth’s, opening its first location in 1878, was the very first dime store.

By the 1950s and 1960s there was a dime store that graced about every small-town main street.

Items were sold from clothes to candy, but for little girls the doll aisle was the special treat.

Some dime stores were known as chain stores because they had many different locations.

Others were operated locally by individuals as a hometown occupation.

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A variety of chain dime stores included Grants, Kresge’s, Ben Franklin, and McCrory’s to mention only a few.

Here, for years, parents purchased items for their children that were inexpensive, appealing, and new.

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Many remember dime stores although mostly they are thought of as an institution of the past.

In the late 1950s-1960s Woolworth’s offered “Little Miss Marie.” This doll’s outfit was named “Sunday Best.”

She came in a box marked “Sold Only At Woolworth’s” and was fashionably dressed.

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At dime stores many things could be purchased for a nickel or a dime or maybe just a little more.

Variety stores such as these were also known as the Five and Dime or 5 and 10 Cent Stores.

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Presently in Harrisville, West Virginia is Berdine’s Five and Dime.

This store opened in 1908 and is still welcoming customers at the present time.

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There were dolls in boxes and baskets and swings and bins.

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There were dolls with cribs, strollers, and some portrayed as twins.

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In the 1920s and 1930s, dime stores offered dolls made of bisque, celluloid, or composition from which to pick.

By the late 1940s to the 1960s, little girls would have their choice of dolls made of vinyl or hard plastic.

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The most popular category of dime store dolls were “Display Dolls.” Their dresses were stapled on and many were made of soft vintage cotton, nylon, or netting.

Nevertheless, little girls, when they were able to purchase one of these dolls, were happy with what they were getting.

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These dolls came costumed as storybook characters or women in history.

Most had pretty hats; their clothes had lace and frills and their outfits were somewhat glittery.

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The display dolls were usually not very big. They were seven or eight inches tall, made of hard plastic with synthetic or mohair wigs.

Some had painted eyes and others had eyes that opened and closed.

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Their arms moved, but their legs usually remained in a fixed pose.

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The Duchess Company, in the 1940s, made some very nice display doll examples.

Today you can occasionally still find some of these fancily-attired samples.

Some display dolls were found on a box of heart candy or in a plastic dome.

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These would make nice gifts, and several of them were probably admired and taken home.

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During the era of the late 1940s throughout the 1950s mothers often taught their daughters how to sew.

Off to the dime store they would go to purchase material, buttons, thread, or whatever they might use.

Then mother and daughter together would outfit their dolls in any way they would choose.

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Dime stores had “Dress Me dolls” that sold in cellophane packages that were ready to dress.

Mommy-made clothes were nice for these dolls as they would become a work in progress.

At 5 and 10 Cent Stores McCall’s and Simplicity patterns for doll clothes could be bought.

Clothes similar to those worn by dolls in the department stores could then be made; this is what little girls often sought.

Factory-made doll clothes were for sale for dolls like “Thumbelina” and “Tiny Tears.”

Collectors who bought these items as a child have kept them and enjoyed them for many years.

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Murphy’s dime store had four-inch “Pee Wee” dolls, made by Uneeda Doll Company, which they sold.

Being so small made these dolls unique to play with and suitable for little girls to hold.

Many times dime stores sold generic versions of popular dolls that could be found in department stores.

There was a variety of sizes of dolls for parents and their children to explore.

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During the early 1960s dime stores offered dolls, such as Mattel’s “Chatty Cathy,” who could talk.

Also, in this time period, they would have large dolls like Ideal’s Patti Playpal, or similar types, who could walk.

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Paper dolls, which little girls always enjoyed, were usually available.

Dime stores had many kinds of these and they were quite salable.

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In reminiscing we realize that parents took great joy in the “giving” of these little gifts as well.

The ways parents have cared and provided for their children are too numerous to tell.

From generation to generation material gifts have had their place and show caring.

But the models that parents are for their children will provide the most profitable sharing.

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“Long ago, little girls visited Dime Stores and lingered longingly in front of the shelves of dolls dressed in taffeta and lace. Though they were not the quality of department store dolls, little girls cherished them just the same. Not only has Jane Foster captured the essence of the Dime Store experience in her new book, Dime Store Dolls, but she describes the dolls so well that I feel I am once again that little girl wishing for a very special doll. Thank you, Jane, for writing a book that not only provides a wonderful history lesson, but also tugs at my heart.”

—Donna W. Brown-Retired, school librarian, authored articles for Antique Doll Collector Magazine, Doll Collector Magazine, Miniature Collector Magazine, and is a columnist for The Hammonton Gazette in Hammonton, NJ “Reading Dime Store Dolls is truly a walk down memory lane. As a child growing up in 1950 Burbank, California, I fondly remember saving my allowance (a nickel a week) so I could treat myself to a treasure at Neff ’s Five and Dime. Through Jane’s words I can once again visualize the magic the aisles held for my childhood eyes. Dolls were my friends…whether from Santa or from the Dime Store. As an adult, I continue to love dolls, a love that was nurtured through my Dime Store visits. The Dime Store holds a special place in American history and because of Jane’s book it will not be forgotten.”

—Susan Foreman, owner Once Upon a Tyme, Cambria, CA “Dime Store Dolls brings back lots of memories of my childhood when a visit to Ben Franklin or the Five and Dime was such a treat. You can relive those times as you look at the dolls that were popular then and enjoy the era all over again.”

—Patsy Moyer, from Las Cruces, NM, author of a variety of doll reference publications about vintage dolls and is now active in the study of modern dolls Award winning author, Jane Foster, taught elementary school for 38 years, and then taught reading on a part-time basis at the elementary school level for five years after retirement. She is a member of Risen King Church and the Kanawha Valley Doll Club. Jane’s first children’s book is Dime Store Days and is a Mom’s Choice Award Recipient. She writes doll articles for Antique Doll Magazine, Doll News Magazine, and has written for Doll Collector (formerly Contemporary Doll) Magazine. Jane and her husband live in her native town of Hurricane, West Virginia.

Award-winning author and illustrator, Ashley Teets, is a summa cum laude graduate of Alderson Broaddus College with a B.F.A in visual art with a minor in creative writing. After two semesters of graduate work at West Virginia University she continued her graduate study through the Simmons College satellite graduate program at the Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art in Amherst, Massachusetts. She holds a Masters in Arts Administration through the University of Kentucky and is a graduate of Don Bluth University. Ashley is also a portrait artist, muralist and art instructor. For more information visit www.AshleyBelote.com.