Izannah Walker Doll Classes

Izannah Walker Inspired Doll

by Dixie Redmond

For those of you who are interested in Izannah Walker Doll Classes, the Izannah Walker Online Workshop is a self-paced class.   The class has patterns in PDF form to be downloaded by you, an 82 page PDF instruction book to be downloaded by you, and detailed pictures of construction details from original Izannah Walker dolls.  There is also a message board where a great group of doll makers share what they're learning and spur each other on.  Designing the pattern for the class and hosting an Izannah Walker doll class has been fun for me.  And from the feedback I get from class members, making the pattern up has been fun for them as well.  You can see a variety of dolls created by class members in a slideshow shown here.  

Izannah Walker and Maggie Bessie Dolls...

It's funny how connections are made. I belong to the Yahoo group Vintage Cloth Dollmaking. One of the members mentioned a fabulous Maggie Bessie pattern that has been developed by Bradley Justice. So of course I wanted to buy the pattern, because Maggie Bessie dolls are very intriguing and beautiful. When I got the pattern, I sent a Maggie Bessie doll picture to Bradley, mentioning that I write a site dedicated to Izannah Walker. Bradley then sent me some pictures of an original Izannah Walker doll and got permission from the owner of the Izannah doll to post them here. How wonderful! Many thanks to Bradley and to the owner of the original Izannah Walker doll.

Bradley Justice's Maggie Bessie Inspired Pattern
"A North Carolina Doll"

Let's talk a bit about Bradley's Maggie Bessie inspired pattern. He was able to look at original Maggie Bessie dolls and study their construction prior to developing his pattern. The North Carolina Doll (his name for the pattern) makes up into a 14 inch doll. A perfect size for most dollmakers. If you are interested in purchasing the Maggie Bessie pattern, email shawstein@aol.com for more information. The pattern for the doll and traditional Maggie Bessie dress is $15. Bradley has an additional dress pattern and "haube cap" pattern to be purchased separately.

Here are the Izannah Walker Doll pictures Bradley is sharing here with the permission of the owner of the doll -

The Texture of 100 Years of Dollhood

The texture of over 100 years of dollyhood is beautiful. It's my hope that the creations I make will be around 100 years from now and more, even if they show the signs of loving care of their owners. You've seen this doll before, but not some of the detail pictures I was able to take, courtesy of Lucy's Doll House in Camden, Maine.

The dress on this doll is particularly sweet.
The fabric was so fine and thin, and the print so charming.

This particular doll was layered in clothing - she had on pantaloons, then a chemise and under slip, and then on top of that was an embroidered dress undergarment, and finally the sweet dress above.

Tilly, Wisconsin's Izannah Walker Doll

1951.1608, Wisconsin Historical Society

A few months ago Melissa Voigt went to visit the Izannah Walker "Tilly" at the Wisconsin Historical Society. While she was there, she was able to take pictures of the doll there. Tilly is object number 1951.1608 in the WHS collection and is described as a "cloth doll, girl, green plaid dress, white apron, USA, Izannah Walker, 1855-1865." Because of Melissa's efforts, and the generosity of the Wisconsin Historial Society, we are able to post pictures of Tilly here on the Izannah Walker Chronicles.

1951.1608, Wisconsin Historical Society

1951.1608, Wisconsin Historical Society

1951.1608, Wisconsin Historical Society

1951.1608, Wisconsin Historical Society

1951.1608, Wisconsin Historical Society

1951.1608, Wisconsin Historical Society

1951.1608, Wisconsin Historical Society

1951.1608, Wisconsin Historical Society

1951.1608, Wisconsin Historical Society

Tilly is also featured in the book The Story of My Dolls by Alice Timpet. In her book, Alice Timpet describes her dolls, one of which is named Tillie. Alice never mentions that Tillie is an Izannah Walker doll, perhaps because she didn't know!

Thanks so much to Melissa for taking the pictures, and for getting permission from the Wisconsin Historical Society to post them here. Here she is, holding Tilly. I understand very much the look on her face!

The Wisconsin Historical Society has an
excellent collection of
children's clothing online,
as well as dolls.

Stay tuned, because another generous person
has sent a picture of an original Izannah Walker doll!
I'll be posting that in a few days.

Izannah Walker's Patent Anniversary

Today, November 4th, is the anniversary of Izannah Walker applying for a patent for her dolls. She had been making dolls a long while, and we don't know why she took so long to apply for a patent. But it's interesting that she did, and in her own name, too!

The Wonderful Primitive Izannah Walker Doll at Lucy's Doll House

This past Friday I took a drive down to Lucy's Doll House in Camden. It is always so much fun to go, but especially fun for me as they have another Izannah in the house. It's about an hour and a half from me, but would be worth a cross-country trip. Sharp eyes will know where this doll was acquired from. I was able to get some pictures, and take some measurements of her, which is wonderful. This doll is for sale at Lucy's Dollhouse. While I was there I also took a peek at the wonderful Columbian doll they have, and the sweetest little Babyland Rag.

Here are pictures of the Izannah doll - courtesy of Lucy's Doll House and my camera. :-)

This sweet primitive doll
had 4 layers of clothing on:
her dress, an embroidered white underdress,
a petticoat and a chemise and pair of pantaloons.

Lucy's Doll House
is located in Camden, Maine.

Applying for a Patent in 1873

If the oral tradition concerning Izannah Walker is true, she had likely been making dolls since the 1840's. Monica Bessette owns a tintype dating to 1858 which shows a child holding an Izannah Walker doll. If Izannah had been making dolls by 1858, why did she wait at least 15 years to apply for a patent?

Women were allowed to patent inventions under the Patent Act of 1790, but in many states women could not legally own property independent of their husbands. This might have been a barrier for some women applying for patents. What’s the point of applying for a patent if you can’t own the company that makes the profit from your invention? To get around this, when women had ideas, the patents were applied for in the name of a brother or father, to keep the invention and possibility for profit within the family.

Rhode Island at the time was restrictive regarding suffrage for white males, never mind women and people of color. By the early 1840s the voting population of males had been reduced by one half of the population, because men were required to own $134 freehold in order to vote. It is likely that this restrictive suffrage environment might have made it challenging for the small business owner in Rhode Island. This is the climate in which Izannah, a woman, lived, invented and created.

Many of you who read this blog are women who have small businesses of your own. You are doll makers, shop owners, pattern makers. You understand the amount of thought, creativity and follow-through it takes to be a working artist and business person. Imagine trying to run your business and not be allowed to own it. Imagine developing an idea and having to pass it off as your brother’s or father’s invention. In 1869, the National Woman Suffrage Association (NWSA) was formed in New York. I wonder what newspapers Izannah read, and if news of this movement fueled her views about her own work and life?

The fact that Izannah did eventually apply for the patent in her own name tells us something about Izannah. At the age of 56, she was successful enough to take the time and money to pay a lawyer to apply for a patent. It tells us that she thought it was important to claim her creation as her own. And perhaps her application of a patent in her own name makes a statement about women as contributors in the American society in which she lived.

Free Izannah Walker Doll Template Pattern

UPDATE - Since I offered this free pattern I had the chance to study many Izannah Walker dolls closely. I developed a pattern that is based on those studies which can be taken as a workshop. If you'd like to know more about this pattern which is very true to the original dolls, then go to http://izannahwalkerworkshop.blogspot.com

Hi, Folks - I gave this free pattern a while ago on my Northdixie Designs blog to use in making a small Izannah Walker doll, so I thought I would put it here to share as well. I used this pattern for the Izannah Walker doll I made pictured above. I added paper clay on top of the head and shoulders. Finished, it made up a doll was around 15" tall, depending on how you attach limbs, etc. I've become better at dressmaking since I made this doll. It's still one of my favorites.

Click here to go to an
updated version of this free pattern.