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The Doll Museum at the Old Rectory
50 West New England Avenue
Worthington, Ohio
43085-3536
(614) 885-1247
Fax: (614) 885-1040
Worthhsoc@aol.com
Worthington Historical Society Logo

Open Tuesday - Friday: 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m., Saturday: 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.

Picture of 19th Century Doll
"Thankful" by Isannah Walker
The museum features a distinguished collection of 19th and 20th century dolls.   A Parade of Doll Homes is our special exhibition.

 Parian bisques: The fine unglazed china bisque heads of these dolls resemble Grecian parian marble. The molded heads have elaborate hairdos, usually blonde and are often decorated with bows, flowers and neck frills.
 
French fashion models: These beautiful dolls have real hair wigs, elaborate costumes and all the accessories a lady of the late 1800’s might desire.
 
Milliner's models: These slender French dolls model fashions sent as miniature examples to England and America to show the latest fashions.
 
French bebes: “Juvenile” dolls such as a French bebe by Jumeau, Armand Marseilles or Charles Marsh reflect the recognition of childhood and its own fashions and toys.
 
Portrait dolls: An assortment of the famous, including the fashion setting Empress Eugenie of France (wife of Emperor Napolean III), Countess Dagmar of Denmark (married to Czar Alexander III), French artist Rosa Bonheur and Alice in Wonderland
 
American dolls:  Our diverse collection includes a doll with a papier mache head and a homemade body by Ludwig Greiner, a Joel Ellis doll made in 1873 from rock maple, jointed, with pewter hands and feet and an excellent example of a doll by Izannah Walker with its adorable painted fabric face and original clothing.
 
We also have dolls as small as 1” tall, dolls made with rubber, wood, wax and even a doll made from a wishbone.
A special display case holds the Japanese Hina Matsuri, including the emperor, empress and their court. It was presented to the City of Worthington by its sister city Sayama, (Japan), a town renowned for doll making.
Emperor and Empress Japanese Dolls
You are invited to tour the Parade of Doll Homes
Iconic dollhouses from Gottschalk, McLoughlin, Bliss, Rich, Marx and others as well as several homemade houses and their furnishings illustrate the "miniature" domestic life of various eras from the early 1900's onward.  One of our members has donated three houses from her collection, one house was purchased from the doll fund, and a local collector has loaned two houses to complement those already in the collection.  Come see, remember, and learn about life in miniature!

Admission is $1.50 for a self guided tour. Group tours or special group tours for Girl Scouts or children are also available. Group tours can be scheduled for weekdays or the weekend.

Site hosted by the Worthington Libraries