Improvements in Paper Dolls.
Year: 1895

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Paper Dolls.
I, ROBERT MCCALMONT, of Franklin, in the County of Venango, and State
of Pennsylvania, United States of America, Attorney-at-Law, do hereby declare
the nature of my invention to be as follows:-
The object of the invention is to furnish improved paper dolls and provide
certain novel and useful devices or appliances for making the same; and the
invention has particularly in view to enable children to make their own paper dolls
by utilizing for this purpose the figures printed on the fashion plates and in
periodicals and other publications to illustrate different patterns or styles of
costumes, thus not only affording a source of amusement to the children, but
saving the expense of purchasing their paper dolls ready made, and furnishing at
a very small cost a great variety of interchangeable costumes for each doll.
I employ a plain strip of paper, leather, pasteboard, or other flexible, but rather
stiff material. I also make a small flattened loop of any sort of material, but
preferably of this paper. On one side this loop is provided with mucilage or any
other kind of adhesive material. The length and width of the aforesaid strip are
not material; the former necessarily varying with the sizes of the dolls, and the
latter as desired. The length of the said loop is also immaterial; but in width it
should be such as to receive and clasp the strip within it with sufficient friction to
hold it snugly therein in any position of adjustment and yet to permit it to be slid
in and out of said loop with the application of some slight force. These devices,
constructed as above described, constitute the essential features of my invention,
and they may be applied and used in the most convenient manner, as desired.
Dated this 21st day of November 1895.
F. W. BARKER,
Applicant's Agent.
I, ROBERT MCCALMONT of Franklin, in the County of Venango, and State
of Pennsylvania, United States of America, Attorney-at-Law do hereby declare
the nature of this invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be
particularly described and ascertained in and by the following statement :-
The object of the invention is to furnish improved paper dolls and provide
certain novel and useful devices or appliances for making the same; and the
invention has particularly in view to enable children to make their own paper dolls
by utilizing for this purpose the figures printed on the fashion plates and in
periodicals and other publications to illustrate different patterns or styles of
costumes, thus not only affording a source of amusement to the children, but saving
the expense of purchasing their paper dolis ready made and furnishing at a very
small cost a great variety of interchangeable costumes for each doll.

page_text: The invention and the manner of applying the same are illustrated in the
accompanying drawings, forming part of this specification, wherein――
Figure 1 shows in perspective a combined prop and head-strip and a number of
body-loops.
Figure 2 is an elevation of the combined prop and head-strip shown in Figure 1,
with a doll head attached thereto.
Figure 3 a front view of a doll body without the head, the loop for connecting
the head-strip being shown in dotted lines.
Figure 4 a front view of a doll complete, and
Figure 5 a side edge view of the same.
Referring first to Fig. 1, A denotes a plain strip of paper, leather, pasteboard, or
other flexible but rather stiff material. At its upper end this strip is provided
on one or both sides (as preferred) with mucilage or other adhesive material, a.
B indicates a small flattened loop of any sort of material, but preferably of thin
paper. On one side this loop is provided with mucilage or any other kind of
adhesive material b.
The length and width of the strip A are not material. The former will necessarily
vary with the sizes of the dolls, and the latter may be as desired. The length of
the loop B is also immaterial; but in width it should be such as to receive and
clasp the strip A within it with sufficient friction to hold it snugly therein in any
position of adjustment and yet to permit it to be slid in and out with the application
of some slight force. These devices A and B, constructed as above described,
constitute the essential features of the invention, and I now explain the manner of
applying and using the same.
There are many varieties of ready-made paper dolls on the market; but they
are complicated and frail of construction and are so easily torn or broken that they
last only a short while. Moreover they are quite expensive, so much so that it is
only well to do children who can afford them.
My invention is designated to simplify the construction and cheapen the cost of
these dolls and contemplates utilizing obsolete fashion plates old illustrated papers,
and other publications, and purposes making them out of the pictures that are
contained in these prints, for the purpose of displaying the prevailing fashions in
dress &c., the intention being to supply devices or appliances that will enable the
children to make the dolls for themselves by simply cutting out the heads and
bodies of such figures as strike their fancy and mounting them, as hereinafter more
fully described.
In Figures 3 and 4, C illustrates the body part of the picture or figure of a child
as cut out of some fashion print or paper, and D, Figures 2 and 4, denotes the head.
The head may either be the one belonging to the body C or one cut from some
other figure; but in any event it must be separate from the body. Upon the back
of the body in line with the neck and preferably at a point between the shoulders,
is pasted one of the paper loops B, (shown in Fig. 1) it being only necessary to
moisten the mucilage on the side of the loop and stick it on in the same way as one
would an ordinary postage stamp. The head portion of the doll is formed by
securing the upper end of the prop or head-strip A to the back of the cut-out
head D by moistening the mucilage a and sticking the head on precisely as in the
case of the loop B. When the parts are thus secured together, all that is necessary
to complete the doll is to insert the lower end of the head-strip in the loop and
adjust it until the neck of the head comes in proper position relative to the neck
portion of the body.
As before stated the strip A (shown in Figure 5) is formed of relatively stiff
material, and it is advisable to have it flexible enough to be bent backward, as
indicated in the drawings. The object of making the strip of stiff material will be
apparent when it is remembered that the paper upon which fashion plates and
publications are printed is quite thin and flimsy, so that it is almost necessary to
provide some support or stiffening to keep the cut-out figures in shape. The
advantage obtained by having the strip flexible is that it may be bent backward at

page_text: the lower end so as to constitute a prop to hold the figure erect thus permitting the
dolls to stand alone, the wide base of the figure and the prop at the rear constituting
a triangular base support.
Such being the construction and manner of applying my improved devices, it
will be noted that the invention is one of great simplicity, the parts being few and
the manner of connecting them together strong and easily adjustable; also, that it
permits of an almost unlimited interchangeability of heads and bodies, thus
permitting each doll to have, as it were, any number of dresses or costumes.
In putting the invention upon the market I contemplate packing the strips in
small packages or boxes of, say, a dozen in a package and including a number of
the loops also, and as more than one loop may be pasted on the back of the body
portion of the figure it will be best to make the number of loops on a box
considerably in excess of the number of strips.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion, and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is :-
1. The herein before described appliances for making paper dolls, the same
consisting of the strip A, having the adhesive material a on one end, in combination
with the loop B, having the adhesive material on one side; substantially as and
for the purpose set forth.
2. The hereinbefore described improvement in paper dolls, the same consisting
in the body C having the loop B pasted on the back thereof, and the separate
head D secured on one end of the strip A, said strip being inserted and held in the
loop B; substantially as and for the purpose set forth.
3. The hereinbefore described improvement in paper dolls, the same consisting
in a body C, of relatively thin material, and having the loop B pasted on the upper
portion of the back thereof, and the separate head D also of relatively thin material
and pasted on the upper end of the strip A, said strip being of stiffer material
than the body and being inserted and held in the loop B, and being also bent
backwardly at its lower end to form a prop; substantially as and for the purposes
Bet forth.
Dated this 21st day of August 1896.
F. W. BARKER,
Applicant's Agent.