Dolly Dingle Paper Dolls (Z8)

Posted on December 15, 2016 by Pre-War Cards

‘It’s In The Details’

Title	Dolly Dingle Paper Dolls (Z8)
Year	1920
Size	5 1/2″ x 12″ (doll) / 5 1/2″ x 8 1/2″ (uniform)
Images	Color
Type	Paper Dolls
Number in Set	200+

Dolly Dingle Paper Dolls Overview

July 1920 Dolly Dingle Magazine Paper Doll 2 Paper dolls were particularly popular in the late 1800s and early 1900s. One of the biggest distributors of them was McLoughlin, who also created some related to sports. They were basically paper cutouts of people (usually children) that could then be outfitted with paper cutouts of clothing.

These paper dolls were called the Dolly Dingle series and were printed over several years. They were printed starting in March 1913 and continued through the 1930s. A total of more than 200 were issued in Pictorial Review, a women’s publication (magazine). Numerous series’ with different themes were created. For example, one was titled, “Dolly Dingle’s Trip Around the World.” Most of the dolls were not related to sports with outfits simply consisting of different dresses. However, a few had sports themes.

As these were distributed with a magazine, they would be classified as Z8 in Jefferson Burdick’s American Card Catalog.

A particular one features Dolly and a baseball uniform. This one was available in the July 1920 issue of the magazine. As with others, the child was meant to be able to be adorned with several outfits. The baseball uniform is just one of many that could have been used for this doll. The uniform isn’t specific to a real team. It is only a generic gray and black outfit. In addition to baseball, a football doll was also printed.

While the dolls are various sizes, the baseball doll shown here measures approximately 5 1/2″ x 12″ (and as you can see, the uniform is slightly smaller).

Dolly was typically the subject, but many others were also printed that were called her friends. One features a boy named Paul that has a tennis uniform.

These dolls were created by artist Grace Drayton. In addition to these, Grace also was the illustrator of the Campbell Kids series from the early 1900s through 1933 for Campbell Soup. Some of the children, as a result, look similar to those. She actually modeled the Dolly Dingle character after herself. Drayton was one of the earliest well-known female illustrators, mostly for her work with the Campbell Soup pictures and these Dolly Dingle paper dolls.

It is also worth pointing out that reproductions of these are also known. These were reprinted several times in the 1970s and 1980s. While the reproductions are most commonly seen, the originals are not too difficult to find.

Dolly Dingle Paper Dolls Checklist

More than 200 different dolls/outfits were printed but the exact number is unknown. The sports dolls that I have seen are below. Where the dates are known, they have been added.