For most, the brother and sister team of Raggedy Ann & Andy remain nostalgic memories of the innocence of American youth; two peach colored rag dolls with old fashioned patriotic colored outfits and a head full of red yarned hair. For some, images of Raggedy Ann & Andy remind them of the many adventures, mysteries and beautiful places that were found in between the pages of their famous books penned by Raggedy Ann creator himself Johnny Gruelle. And for some, Raggedy Ann alone stands out as a symbolic representation of the anti-vaccination movement in America during the late 1800’s. History has it that writer Johnny Gruelle created his fictional Raggedy Ann character in 1915 when his daughter, Marcella, brought him an old hand-made rag doll that he drew a face on. He came up with the name for this crafted doll from a combination of book titles by poet James Whitcomb Riley and soon after, introduced his red yarn haired doll to the public as Raggedy Ann in the 1918 book ‘Raggedy Ann Stories’. Tragically, Johnny’s daughter died at the tender age of 13 following a non-consented school vaccination for smallpox. Gruelle became an opponent of the vaccination, and the Raggedy Ann doll was soon adopted as a symbol of the anti-vaccination movement as a result. Til this day, the battle between vaccination supporters and opponents continues as increased awareness of the risk factors surrounding immunizations comes to light.
Now, when you stumble across an antique Raggedy Ann or Andy doll, read one of Johnny Gruelle’s timeless Raggedy Ann adventure books or purchase a yard or two of Raggedy Ann & Andy novelty fabric, maybe it won’t just be nostalgic memories and an affinity for red heads that speaks to your heart. Maybe, just maybe it will be a reminder of children like little Marcella and the quest for more holistic way of living for all of us.
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Fabrics StoreLabels: anti-vaccination, immunization, johnny gruelle, novelty fabric, raggedy ann, raggedy ann and andy, raggedy ann and andy fabric
I remember as a child, having a Raggedy Ann doll. I don’t quite remember where she came from, but she was about a foot or so tall, wore a red, white and blue girlie dress with a light white lace trim, and rocked that infamous mane of red yarned hair that she is still famous for today. She was soft and durable and quite the contortionist. Often times I would take her out of my wooden toy box only to stuff her quite snuggly in my old fish bowl that was two sizes too small just to see if her face would look bigger behind the glass. Other times, my sister and I would play tug-of-war with her to test her endurance and strength under extreme conditions. Despite my tough love approach, Raggedy Ann always kept an upbeat smile on her face and soon earned by respect for her tenacity and devotion to me….until Saturday April 28th, 1979. It was a dark and dreary spring day and I was nervously watching my line up of horror shows, when one came on featuring a doll quite like mine. This doll had an owner about my age as well, who trusted and loved her doll with all her heart. But it seemed the sweet smile that this Raggedy Ann carried, was just a front. In fact, the Raggedy Ann in this movie was possessed by some evil spirit and would move at will without the hands of her owner controlling her. The idea that my lovable rag doll could fall suspect to that same demonic notion as I slept innocently in the night was simply uncomfortable to say the least. So without further adieu, I quickly picked up my cloth friend and handed her over to my mother for immediate deportation to the island of Goodwill. I don’t know how my Raggedy Ann finally met her demise, but hopefully she stayed out of trouble and went out like the trooper that she projected herself to be.
My love for her over the years always remained, and often times I thought about my red headed friend. Many early stories of her and her sidekick brother Andy told of adventures in magical places and the meeting of strange new faces. They even had an animated television series that ran from 1988-92 to mark their resurgence since her original debut in the 1918 book ‘Raggedy Ann Stories’ by creator Johnny Gruelle. Images and captions of the two have even been reprinted on fabric for die hard Raggedy Ann & Andy fans alike. From ‘Raggedy Ann & Andy with Toys’ to ‘Raggedy Ann & Andy with Puppies’, the cotton prints found at J&O Fabrics are the perfect novelty item for the young at heart.
P.S., If by chance anyone reading this has seen a cute little red headed doll with a ‘P.O.W’ tattoo on her arm and a broken left leg, that means my Raggedy is still alive. Take good care of her and tell her I said “HI!”
Check out our full selection of Raggedy Ann & Andy fabric here!
Check out our collection of children's fabric here!
Check out our fabulous novelty fabric here!
Posts by J&O
Fabrics StoreLabels: childrens fabric, childrens novelty fabric, johnny gruelle, raggedy andy, raggedy ann, raggedy ann and andy