1928 Effanbee Patsy doll 14" face

Effanbee F & B Dolls 1912-1939

Founded around 1912 in New York city, Effanbee stands for Fleischaker & Baum - F & B - who were the company founders. They became well known for being the first to produce a realistically proportioned child doll named Patsy; they then created companion dolls, a large clothing wardrobe and Patsy's own fan club, reportedly with 275,000 members. F & B also created the first hard rubber, drink and wet doll named DyDee Baby.  It appears Effanbee acquired the Belle Doll & Toy Company in the late 1950s and continued using the Belle company name.  The Effanbee Company produced composition, hard rubber, cloth, hard plastic and vinyl dolls.

Doll mold numbers attributed to Effanbee - F & B are:

DECO, F & B, F + B - N.Y. D co, F + D D co 6cj N.Y., Patent Pending, 7c, 27c, 24, 34, 52, 54, 56, 58, 70, 72, 74, 102, 104, 106, 108, 124N, DECO 144, 152, 156, 158, 162, 166, 176, 172, 174, 201, 303, 334, 364, 455, 462, 802.

More F & B dolls 1940-1970s

Doll Makers by Country  American USA | Doll Glossary | Doll Makers World | English UK | French FR | German DE

Dolls by Material  Bisque | Celluloid | China | Cloth | Composition | Hard Plastic | Metal | Papier Mache | Rubber | Wax | Wood

1912-1925 Effanbee Baby Dainty doll, 13, 15" tall, composition shoulder head on a cloth stuffed body, blue painted eyes, open mouth with four teeth and felt tongue or closed mouth, molded painted hair or the 1913 version has a closed mouth, came with a pacifier, molded hair or wigged.

Early dolls are marked: Effanbee Dolls Walk Talk Sleep in an oval, after 1920  marked: Effanbee Baby Dainty.  Shown is the closed mouth version.

1912+ F & B Baby Dainty doll, 15"

1912 Effanbee Billy Boy doll, 15" tall, copy of K & R bisque head doll mold 115 with a pouty mouth (boy or girl) and similar to Käthe Kruse's Fiammingo head mold, both molds had closed mouths, flared composition head and short arms, cloth stuffed body, upper arms and straight legs with inside disks at hip joints and black sewn on boots, molded painted hair, painted blue eyes, puckered mouth with partial hole for whistling, squeaker inside body.  Doll marked 364.

1915 F & B Billy Boy doll, 18" tall, copy of K & R bisque head doll mold 115, and similar to the Fiammingo head mold used by Käthe Kruse, composition flange head with short composition arms, cloth body, upper arms and inside disk joints with bent legs, molded painted hair, painted blue eyes and closed mouth.  Doll is unmarked.

See also Horsman's 1915 Boy Doll with a similar Fiammingo head mold with brown painted eyes.

1912 F & B Billy Boy doll, 15" tall,

shown is the similar Fiammingo head mold by Käthe Kruse, with a closed mouth

1913-1939 Effanbee Baby Grumpy doll or Grumpy doll, 14 & 20" tall, composition flange head, lower arms, cloth stuffed body, upper arms and legs, side glancing painted eyes, molded hair with a "grumpy" facial expression.  Earliest dolls are marked on the head with the mold numbers 34, 104, 108, 172, DECO 174 or 176, later ones use the Effanbee Dolls Walk Talk Sleep in an oval marking on the shoulder plate.  Copy of a Gebruder Heubach bisque head mold, with slight changes.

1915 Effanbee Aunt Dinah doll, 14-15" tall, black doll, composition flared head (uses the Grumpy head mold smiling face), lower arms, cloth stuffed body, legs and upper arms, painted black hair, brown eyes, open mouth, doll marked 104, 106 backwards.

1915 Effanbee Brick Bodkins doll uses a similar head mold as Dinah, doll marked 201.

1913+ F & B Grumpy doll, 14"

1915 Effanbee Betty Bounce doll, 11-14" tall, composition flange head and lower arms, inside disk jointed cloth body, jointed at shoulders and hips, molded painted hair with hair loop or a staple for a bow, painted eyes, closed mouth.  Doll marks 70, 72, 74, DECO, F + B - N.Y.  D, with co inside the D.

1915 F & B Betty Bounce doll, 14"

1917-1923 and 1931 Effanbee Mary Jane doll, 16, 18, 20 or 24" tall, all composition, ball jointed body, jointed at the neck, shoulders, elbows, wrists, knees and hips, moving sleep eyes some can be painted, real human hair wig,  came dressed in various lace and ribbon trimmed voile dresses.  From what we can tell, this was the only doll Effanbee sold that had this all composition ball jointed body.  Mary Jane was also sold thru Sears as noted by the 1921 ad.

In 1919 Effanbee commissioned the Lenox Pottery Company to produce bisque heads (during WWI bisque dolls from Europe were not available in the USA market), these may not have been marketed or very few were produced, the same Lennox head molds were later made in composition and are considered very rare.  The 1919 Mary Jane doll came on a German kidelene body with composition wood arms & legs with extra joints.

1921 Sears Mary Jane doll ad

The Mary Jane doll,

all composition, jointed body

1918 Effanbee Bathing Bud Doll 7" tall, all composition one piece chubby baby body and head jointed only at the shoulder, molded hair some with a mohair wig, painted eyes, closed slight smiling mouth, both arms are bent at the elbow, dolls have a faint molding of a one piece union suit, straight legs molded together at the upper inner thigh, bare feet.  Doll also came as a Girl doll or an ethnic brown Girl doll with the upper neckline of the union suit painted and possibly other dolls, too.  This novelty doll is a copy of the all bisque German Baby Bud doll. Doll marked Effanbee in script.   

1918 F & B Bathing Bud doll 7"

ca. 1920s Effanbee Mama doll, 23" tall, composition head, lower arms and legs, wide cloth one piece stuffed body, upper arms and upper legs with stitching only at the hips for movement.  Molded painted blonde hair, blue painted eyes, closed mouth.  Doll marked  Effanbee in script.

ca. 1920s F & B Mama doll, 23"

ca. 1924 Effanbee Baby Evelyn doll, 18" tall, composition head, limbs, cloth body, molded painted hair, sleep eyes.  This doll has magnets in her hands to hold metal objects like a hankie, flowers, etc.  Doll is marked on neck rim Effanbee Baby Evelyn.

Photo courtesy of Ronsfancy

ca. 1924 Baby Evelyn doll, 18"

1924-1935 Effanbee Marilee doll, 14, 24 & 27 " tall, composition shoulder head and limbs child or toddler like, cloth body with Mama crier, wigged (could have molded hair beneath), tin sleep eyes, open mouth with four teeth.  Marked: Effanbee Marilee Copy ® Doll.  Came in both a white or black doll.

Uses the same cloth body style as: Baby Dainty, Sweetie Pie, Mickey, Baby Bright Eyes, Lovums, 1925 Rosemary.  Other dolls in this line were: Betty Lee 20", Alice Lee 23" & Barbara Lee 29" tall.

1924 F & B Marilee doll, 27 "

1924 Effanbee Pat-O-Pat doll, 13-15" tall, Bye-Lo Baby doll look a like, composition flange head, composition hands, cloth body and legs, molded painted hair, painted eyes, closed mouth.  When you press the button on the tummy she claps her hands.  Doll marked:  Effanbee made in USA.

Photo courtesy of Ronsfancy.

1924 F & B Pat-O-Pat doll, 14"

1924-1930s Effanbee Bubbles doll, sized 13-28" tall, cloth body, composition head and shoulder piece, also arms and legs composition, some were black dolls. 

There was a whole line of Bubbles dolls; Dolly Bubbles doll 14", Charlotte Bubbles doll 20", Betty Bubbles doll 22".

1924 F & B Bubbles doll

1928-1946 Effanbee Patsy doll,  14" tall, cloth body on the first dolls which used the Baby Dainty head mold, later dolls were all composition five piece jointed body, molded painted hair usually a shade of red with a painted headband, there is a whole line of Patsy family of dolls came in many sizes, some have magnets in their hands to hold things.  (Patsy and the 1922 Armand Marseille, Just Me doll mold 310 with a bisque head are identical). 

F & B Patsy doll heads are unmarked, marked on doll back:  Effanbee Patsy Pats. Pend. Doll, or other variations with dolls name.  The 1946 dolls are unmarked, some dolls have been found on the Patricia marked body and with the Patsy Baby head with a mohair wig.  Some of the Patsy dolls came in a black version.  1928-1943 Skippy was Patsy's boyfriend.

Patsy dolls were very popular and very imitated - see the Patsy type doll page for other doll makers dolls.

1928-1946 Patsy doll, 14"

Other Patsy family members;  Wee Patsy 6" (Fairy Princess), Baby Tinyette 7", Tinyette Toddler 8", Patsy Babyette 9", Patsyette 9", Patsy Baby or Patsy Babykin 10", Patsykin, Patriciakin or Patsy Jr. 11", Patsy,  Patricia, or Skippy 14", Patsy Joan 16", Patsy Ann 19", Patsy Lou 22", Patsy Ruth 27", Patsy Mae 30" tall.

1928-1943 Effanbee Skippy doll, 14" tall, Patsy's boyfriend, uses the Patsy composition body, has blonde molded hair with a curl on the forehead, he's modeled on the comic strip character by P. J. Crosby, played in the movie version by Jackie Cooper.  Part of the Patsy Family.  Heads unmarked, marked on back:  Effanbee Patsy Pats. Pend. Doll.

1938 Effanbee Aviator Skippy doll, dressed as an aviator, doll marked Effanbee Skippy ©. P.L. Crosby.

1928 F & B Skippy doll, 14"

1928-1937 Effanbee Lovums doll, 15, 22 & 28" tall, mama doll, composition head and limbs with cloth body, marked with the dolls name & patent No. 1283558.  One of the Lovums dolls had a key wound mechanism to make the sound of a heartbeat.  This shoulder plate and head mold was used to create other  dolls as well.  Reissued from 1977-1980.

1928 F & B Lovums doll, 22"

1928-1937 Effanbee Mary Ann doll, 19" tall, shown all original, composition head and limbs, stuffed cloth body, sleep eyes, open smiling mouth, wigged.  

Photo courtesy of Flozdolz, all pristine and original.

1928 F & B Mary Ann doll, 19"

1928-1944 Effanbee Mae Starr doll, 30" tall, composition shoulder head, cloth body, composition limbs, brunette human hair wig, blue sleep eyes, open mouth with four upper teeth, jointed at the shoulders, has a phonograph in the body and came with six cylinders that played nursery rhymes, doll mark  Mae Starr Doll.  Part of the Patsy Family.

1928 F & B Mae Starr doll, 30"

1928 Effanbee Patsy Ann doll, 19" tall, all composition, molded hair and some have a human or mohair wig over the unpainted molded hair, sleep eyes some came with tin or glass; blue, brown or green, closed mouth, marked: Effanbee Patsy Ann Pat. #1283558.  Part of the Patsy Family.

There is also an open mouth with six upper teeth version, composition body, sleep eyes, used the Lovums doll head with a caracul or human hair wig.

1928 F & B Patsy Ann doll, 19"

1928-1940 Effanbee Patsy Lou doll, 22 1/2" tall, all composition, painted molded hair or with a mohair wig, sleep eyes; blue, brown or green and fully jointed. Part of the Patsy Doll Family.

1928-1940 F & B Patsy Lou doll, 22 1/2" 

1930 & 1946 Effanbee Patsy Joan doll, 16" tall, all composition, sleep eyes with lashes, closed mouth, sleep blue or brown eyes, came with molded hair or with a wig.  Part of the Patsy Family.

1946 they added a black Patsy Joan doll, 17" tall with brown sleep eyes, molded or wigged hair.

Photo courtesy of Flozdolz, pristine and all original.

1946 F & B Patsy Joan doll, 16"

1930-1935 Effanbee Mary Lee doll, 21" tall, composition shoulder head and limbs, cloth child body, wigged, sleep eyes, open smiling mouth with teeth, marked faintly on back of head:  Mary Lee, marked on back of shoulder plate:  Effanbee Doll, Walk, Talk, Sleep.

1932 Effanbee Mary Lee doll, came in 14-15, 16, or 17" tall, used the all composition Patsy Joan doll body or composition head and limbs with a cloth body.

1932 F & B Mary Lee doll, 16"

1931 Effanbee Patsy Babyette doll, 8-9" tall, all composition, molded hair, sleep eyes, dolls were dressed as either a girl or boy.  Patsyette was the same doll with a mohair wig.  Part of the Patsy Family.

1931 F & B Patsy Babyette doll, 8-9"

1931 Effanbee Lambkin doll, 16" tall, composition flange head with molded hair and composition limbs, sleep eyes, open mouth, cloth body, doll mark Lambkins.

1931 F & B Lambkin doll, 16"

1932-1933 Effanbee Patricia doll, 14 & 15" tall, all composition, came in a black or white version, blue, brown or green sleep eyes, brown or auburn wig usually in braids, closed mouth, several different outfits, doll appears to be in her original outfit.  Doll mark  Effanbee Patricia.  Part of the Patsy Family.

1932-1933 F & B Patricia doll, 14"

1933-1950s Effanbee Dy-Dee Baby doll, 9-24" tall, earliest dolls are made with a hard rubber head, later dolls were made of hard plastic, blue, brown or green sleep eyes, real upper lashes, single stroke brows, painted lower lashes, open mouth, applied soft rubber ears, molded painted hair, soft rubber body jointed at the neck, arms and hips, First drink and wet baby doll, came dressed in cotton flannel diaper, doll marked on back:  DyDee Baby U.S. Pat. 1-857-485 England-880-060 France-723-980 Germany-585-647 Other Pat. Pending.

1933+ F & B Dy-Dee Baby doll 11"

1933 Effanbee Little Girl doll, 9 1/2" tall, all composition jointed five piece body, molded painted hair, painted slight side glancing eyes, painted rosebud tiny mouth, wears an organdy dress with a separate slip, panties, socks and oilcloth shoes. Doll mark Effanbee Made in U.S.A.  The Little Girl Doll is a smaller sister doll, to the dolls noted below.

If your doll is 11 1/2" tall, is named and marked Suzette, see below for the 1939 Suzette doll.  If your doll is 14 1/2" tall, see the 1940 Suzanne named and marked doll on the Effanbee 1940s doll page. 

1933 F & B Little Girl doll, 9 1/2"

1935 Effanbee Anne of Green Gables doll, 14, 21 or 28" tall, this was the "real" Anne Shirley doll, a character in Lucy Maud Montgomery's book "Anne of Green Gables", a feisty 11 year old orphan with red auburn hair, used the  Mary Lee doll head mold with open mouth, has a fully jointed body (14" is the Patsy Joan doll type slim body), all composition, sleep eyes, painted upper & lower lashes, wigged. The dolls head maybe faintly marked Mary Lee.  On dolls back mark Anne Shirley

1935 F & B Anne of Green Gables doll, 

Mary Lee doll mold, 14"

1935 Effanbee Anne of Green Gables doll,  9, 11, 14, 16 & 19" tall, this was the " real" Anne Shirley doll, a character in Lucy Maud Montgomery's book "Anne of Green Gables", a feisty 11 year old orphan with red auburn hair, used the Patricia or Patsyette head mold with closed mouth, fully jointed child body all composition or composition and cloth, sleep eyes with painted lashes both upper & lower, auburn or blonde braided wig with bangs.  Think the head is faintly marked: Patricia.  Doll mark  Anne Shirley.

Photo courtesy of Flozdolz, pristine and all original.

1935 F & B Anne of Green Gables doll, 

Patricia doll mold, 14"

1936 Effanbee Ink U Bator Baby doll, 6 1/2" tall, all composition jointed body, molded painted hair, came with it's "incubator" and layette, doll is marked with it's name on back.

1936 F & B Ink U Bator Baby doll, 6 1/2"

1936-1939 Effanbee American Children Portrait Dolls, designed by Dewees Cochran, six dolls were contracted by Effanbee to be produced for the 1936 Toy Show, they are 15, 17 or 20" tall, all composition socket head with jointed body, human hair wig, painted tin or sleep eyes, closed or open mouth.  Usually marked: Effanbee American Children or unmarked.  Also the Effanbee American Children Portrait dolls - Anne Shirley doll mold and mark.

Some of the Dewees doll names were; Barbara Joan doll, Barbara Ann doll, Barbara Lou doll all with an open mouth and teeth.  A Boy doll, Gloria Ann doll and Ruth Ann doll all with closed mouths. Additionally a resource notes the doll names Betty Jean and Peggy Lou doll.

See also the Dewees Cochran 1934-1970s doll page.

In 1997 the U. S. Postal Service Stamp Commerative issued a reproduction vinyl doll based on the earlier Dewees American Children dolls of the 1930s.  Robert Tonner also has reproduced the Effanbee American Children dolls in the 1990's-2004.

F & B American Children Boy doll, 17" tall, the boy doll was sold only one year is unmarked and came with painted tin eyes and closed mouth.

1936-1939 F & B American Children; 

Gloria Ann doll, 20"

1936 Effanbee Sugar Baby doll, 16-25" tall, composition flange head with lightly molded painted hair, sleep eyes or painted, closed mouth, cloth body, partial composition limbs, doll marked on neck Effanbee Sugar Baby Trademark. 

Doll shown, appears to have been restored, repainted.

1936 F & B Sugar Baby doll 25"

1937-1939 Effanbee Clippo the Clown doll, 15" tall, ventriloquist marionette doll, dressed in a red and white clown suit with white organdy collar, white felt hat and white shoes.  Came with a play booklet, tickets and poster.  Designed by Virginia Curtis Austin (1903-1986), other marionettes were; Emily Ann, Lucifer, Liza Lee, Poochie (a dog) and were know as the "Clippo Club".  Virginia toured giving theatre performances with her puppets for many years.

1937-1939 F & B Clippo the Clown doll, 15"

1938-1943 Effanbee Oriental Boy Butin-Nose doll, 8" tall, all composition, molded hair, painted side glancing eyes, jointed at the neck, shoulders & hips.  Marked:  Effanbee.  Came wearing ethnic costumes, doll shown is a boy in an oriental costume, there was a companion girl doll - shown below - Betty.

1938 F & B Oriental Boy

Butin Nose doll, 8"

1938-1943 Effanbee Betty Butin-Nose doll, 8" tall, shown all original with her box, and tag, all composition, molded hair, painted side glancing eyes, jointed at the neck, shoulders & hips.  Marked:  Effanbee. 

1938 F & B Betty Butin-Nose doll, 8"

1939-1959 Effanbee Little Lady doll - Effanbee Anne Shirley doll, 14-15, 18, 21 1/2, 27, 29" tall, all composition jointed doll, sleep eyes, wigged some made of yarn, DeWees Cochran designed one of two hand molds; the other one has separated fingers that are a bit shorter & fatter. Both dolls are marked: Anne Shirley or just Effanbee.  Here is a page with Little Lady doll - Anne Shirley doll clothes from a 1942-1944 Montgomery Ward catalog.  The 1959 Anne Shirley dolls were re-issued doll in hard plastic. 

Photo courtesy of Flozdolz.

1940s F & B Little Lady doll 14",

all original, braided wig, headpiece,

long floral gown, DeWees hands.     

1939-1940 Effanbee Little Lady doll - Historic Doll Sets; three dolls to each set, 30 dolls total, 20" tall, used as department store displays, depicted various clothing from a 1492 Indian Maid to 1939 Miss America a "modern doll". 

What was sold to the public were replicas that were 14" tall, Little Lady doll head mold, body marked Anne Shirley, with painted eyes, Dewees Cochran designed arms of hard rubber with separated slender fingers.

F & B 1939-1940 Little Lady -

Historic Doll, 1620 Plymouth Colony

1939-1946 Effanbee Baby Bright Eyes doll, 1939-1944 Tousle Tot doll or 1938-1941 & 1950 Noma Talker doll, 1957-1981 Sweetie Pie doll, (all same head mold), 19 or 24" tall, cloth body and legs, composition swivel head, composition arms, flirty sleep eyes, caracul wig over molded hair.

Also, Effanbee Tommy Tucker doll, Katie doll, Sugar Pie doll, Mickey doll, Brother doll & Sister doll, a set of 14" twin dolls called Mickey & Janie doll, all used this same head mold.

1939-1946 F & B Baby Bright Eyes doll

1939-1949 Effanbee Mickey doll or Mickey Baby doll, 14" tall, cloth body and legs, composition swivel head, composition arms, sleep eyes (some are flirty), molded painted hair, some have a wig over the molded hair, marked: F & B.  Uses the Baby Bright Eyes head mold, as do many other dolls.

1939 F & B Mickey doll or

Mickey Baby doll, 14"

1939, 1959, 1962 Effanbee Suzette doll, 11 1/2" tall, strung all composition, painted side glancing sleep eyes, molded hair or wigged, slight bent right arm, marked on head Suzette Effanbee USA and on back Suzette Effanbee Made in USA . 

The 1962 Suzette doll is 15" tall and made of vinyl.

1939 F & B Suzette doll, 11 1/2"