Maggie Bessie Pfhol Cloth Dolls 1897+

Maggie Bessie cloth dolls were handmade made, possibly as early as 1897 into the early 1940s in Salem, North Carolina by sisters Maggie and Bessie Pfhol.  Only about 500 Maggie Bessie cloth dolls were reportedly made. All Maggie Bessie cloth dolls are unmarked.

These all cloth dolls of girls or boys, were handmade from patterns created by the Pfhol sisters. Dolls have flat faces with oil painted facial features and hair, that came in various sizes from 13 to 22″ tall. Girl  dolls have center parted painted hair and were dressed in simple style dresses and bonnet with painted oilcloth shoes. Boy dolls have side parted painted hair and are found in far few numbers than girls, they came dressed in shirt, shorts, cap and painted oilcloth shoes.

These all cloth dolls of girls or boys, were handmade from patterns created by the Pfhol sisters. Dolls have flat faces with oil painted facial features and hair, that came in various sizes from 13 to 22″ tall. Girl  dolls have center parted painted hair and were dressed in simple style dresses and bonnet with painted oilcloth shoes. Boy dolls have side parted painted hair and are found in far few numbers than girls, they came dressed in shirt, shorts, cap and painted oilcloth shoes.

Maggie Bessie dolls were made by the sisters (Maggie) Margaret Gertrude Pfohl (1877-1965) and (Bessie) Caroline Elizabeth Pfohl (1870-1959), both of whom remained unmarried.