Black "Scootles" composition doll: Museum Object and Cultural History

The object in the museum catalogue

2023.11.1a: A Black Scootles composition doll designed by Rose O’Neill for Cameo Doll Company. The baby doll has a swivel head and is articulated at the shoulders and hips. It has splayed hands, cheek dimples, a chin dimple, and molded forelock curls and wavy hair with tufts on either side of the head that has been painted a dark brown. The doll’s painted facial features include rosy cheeks; a thin, smiling, closed mouth; side glancing eyes, accented with thick painted eyelashes. The doll is wearing a red and white gingham onesie designed to resemble a skirtall. The skirtall-style onesie has a bib over the chest with wide shoulder straps and an empire-style skirt. The straps are embellished with white scalloped ruffles accented with a red embroidered hem that doubles as a swirl pattern along the edges. The gingham skirt is gathered into pleats at the waistband and there is a red hem line near the bottom. The skirt reaches the top of the baby doll's thighs. Underneath the skirt is the rest of the gingham onesie. The onesie is secured at the back with a safety pin at the top of the waistband. The doll is also wearing white knit socks and white Mary Jane style shoes. The shoes constructed from a coated fabric designed to resemble leather with white ribbon ties at the top.

2023.11.1b: A shoe sole from a Scootles composition doll designed by Rose O’Neill for Cameo Doll Company. The sole is from the proper right foot of the doll. It is gray cardboard, roughly foot shaped, but otherwise plain on both sides.

Materials, dates and provenance

• Date: ca. 1947
• Manufactured by: Cameo Doll Company, American, founded 1922
• Designed by: Rose O'Neill, American, 1874 - 1944
• Type: baby dolls
• Medium: paint on glue and wood pulp with paper, plastic, cloth, cardboard and metal
• Dimensions: H x W x D (2023.11.1a): 12 1/2 × 6 11/16 × 3 13/16 in. (31.7 × 17 × 9.7 cm)
• Dimensions: H x W x D (2023.11.1b): 1/16 × 1 3/16 × 2 3/16 in. (0.2 × 3 × 5.6 cm)
• Place used: United States, North and Central America
• Place made: Port Allegheny, McKean County, Pennsylvania, United States, North and Central America
• Place used: Texas, United States, North and Central America
• Topic: African American
• Topic: Amusements
• Topic: Children
• Topic: Domestic life
• Topic: Families
• Topic: Race relations
• Object number: 2023.11.1ab
• Credit Line: Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, Gift of Linda M. Sheffield
• Data Source: National Museum of African American History and Culture

Sources and reuse

Catalogue descriptions and facts adapted from National Museum of African American History and Culture through the Smithsonian's official Open Access dataset. This record explicitly marks its metadata CC0 1.0; formatting and selection have been changed. The underlying object's rights statement is: Unknown - Restrictions Possible Rights assessment and proper usage is the responsibility of the user.