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The Horsman doll name is the oldest in America. The doll company was established in 1865.

The Horsman Company imported and distributed sporting goods, novelties, games, toys and German dolls for the first 40 years the company was in existence. It was not a doll producer.

The Horsman Company began manufacturing dolls in the early 20th Century when Horsman’s son, Edward Jr. joined the family company. Edward Jr. was the designer and artist of the company, while his father was the business manager. The Horsman Company soon began selling a great number of American-made composition dolls, which were much unlike dolls the Old World produced.

Unfortunately, Edward Jr. died in his 40s in 1918. His father ran the company after the death of his son, but he too died in 1927. The Horsman Doll Company fell into deep financial problems, and ownership of the company began to pass into different hands. This was something that would happen over and over again in the history of the company.

In 1933, when ownership passed into new hands, the company recreated itself to keep up with the changing times. The new owner now was Regal Dolls. The Regal Doll Company was a small company. The company had a large factory in Trenton, New Jersey when they acquired the near-bankrupt Horsman Doll Company and brought it back to life. In the beginning, this company made dolls under the Regal and Horsman names. The Horsman brand name soon proved to be more popular and the Regal Company changed their brand name to “Horsman.”

During the 1930s and 1940s, the Horsman Doll Company was a huge success. Their focus was upon moderately priced, yet high quality, well-dressed baby dolls. The company used no fancy names, or high powered marketing gimmicks. They just produced beautiful baby dolls little girls could love.

During World War II the serious shortage of materials for toy factories lead the Horsman Doll Company to use what materials were available for medical supplies, soft vinyl prostheses and artificial hands for the war veterans in need of such items. However, they did continue making some dolls.

After the war years Horsman used its wartime vinyl experience to start producing dolls made of firm plastic. Although Horsman was the not the first doll company to use vinyl in 1947, it was the first to use vinyl extensively. This was another important milestone in the history of the Horsman Doll Company. They became highly successful at producing the vinyl dolls in extremely large quantities.

Source: Horseman Dolls: The Vinyl Era, 1950-Present by Don Jensen

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© 2007 Connie Limon All Rights Reserved

One of my favorite vintage Madame Alexander dolls is Scarlett. December 1939 was the debut of the new line of Madame Alexander composition Scarlett O’Hara dolls. These exquisite dolls were the first creations to portray the beauty and intrigue of our favorite Southern Belle.

Madame Alexander was inspired by Scarlett’s character from the moment that she read Margaret Mitchell’s book. After reading the book, Madame requested and received permission to make a Scarlett O’Hara doll. While there is some question as to exactly when the first dolls were made, there were official Scarlett O’Hara dolls by Madame Alexander advertised in the Atlanta newspapers on the day of the film’s premier in 1939.

Legend has it that when Madame Alexander heard that David O. Selznick was bringing Margaret Mitchell’s fabulous book, Gone With The Wind, to the screen; she, hoping to gain the market rights, made a Scarlett O’Hara doll and sent it to him. Long before the part was given to Vivien Leigh, Madame Alexander received a contract from MGM to do the dolls. It was uncanny how closely Madame Alexander’s conception of how Scarlett looked matched the actress that would eventually play her.

Madame Alexander chose to launch her Scarlett doll line with a mix of colors and fabrics reminiscent of the ante-bellum era. Hundreds of dresses and coat and dress combinations were created between 1939-1943. The composition Scarlett dolls were attired in dresses of various prints and trim detailing. Most Scarlett dolls wore either a straw hat or a fabric bonnet.

The popularity of the Scarlett doll led Madame Alexander to make even more dolls based on the movie. The Gone With The Wind Collection dates from the early days, when the movie was released, right up to the present day. You can now find a doll for nearly every character in the movie.