Milwaukee W.P.A. Dolls
by Gini Rogowski and Juene Nowak Wussow, History Volunteers
EDITOR'S NOTE: This article is reprinted without illustrations from LORE magazine, a benefit of museum membership. ©1996 Milwaukee Public Museum, Inc.
The Milwaukee W.P.A. Handicraft Project came into being in 1935 to help meet the desperate needs of Milwaukeeans facing the anguish of unemployment in the truly bad times of the Great Depression. Created under the auspices of President Franklin Delano Roosevelt's Works Progress Administration (W.P.A.), the project sought to instill confidence and pride by providing temporary jobs which taught marketable skills especially to people who had little or no job training. It has left an enduring legacy in its surviving artifacts: textiles, furniture, toys, dolls, and hand-painted materials which today are treasured as American folk art highly representative of the 1930s.
Today the Milwaukee Project is best known both nationally and around the world for its unique dolls now called by collectors the classic "W.P.A. Doll." A more proper term would be "Milwaukee's W.P.A. Doll," because many more cities other than Milwaukee produced dolls as part of their programs. None, however, achieved the recognition accorded to Milwaukee's design, which has held the public's interest ever since its inception. The Milwaukee dolls are especially noteworthy in that their creation was carefully and methodically orchestrated by professional artists and educators, whose standards required the highest craftsmanship and a philosophy of creative responsibility to the task at hand. This called for leaders with vision, social understanding, and high qualifications in the arts, be it for the dolls or any of the many other items the project chose to manufacture.
Ever since the project began, much care and time has been given to documenting the growth, plans, ideas, and philosophies of the many professionals involved with the project. This article can serve only as a brief introduction to recognize and bring to the attention of others the story of "a job well done."
Under the federal government's various relief programs, the C.W.A. (Civil Works Administration), the F.E.R.A. (Federal Emergency Relief Administration) and the last incarnation, the W.P.A., many men received jobs to tide them over until they could find work in the private sector. However, hundreds of women and numerous professional people of both sexes still were unemployed. Because of this need, the Women's and Professional Division of the W.P.A. was created. The problem was massive. In Milwaukee County alone, work had to be planned for 2,400 women who had already applied for jobs at the U.S. Employment Bureau. Many were untrained: "We had women who couldn't run a sewing machine or sew by hand." It was for these women that the new project was formed.
The creator of the Milwaukee Handicraft Project, Elsa Ulbricht, described in 1939 how it came into being: It was in early part of September, 1935, that the idea was conceived by Mrs. Harriet Clinton, then supervisor of Women's Projects...She took her idea of "work in the Handicrafts for unemployed women" to president Frank E. Baker of the Milwaukee State Teachers College and in due time, to me.
It was a wonderful idea -- so wonderful that it gave rise to more and more ideas. And, like all ideas that are new and different, untried and not understood. These ideas had to be proved. Objectives and goals had to be formulated around which to aim. But like all good ideas that fall in the path of persons with vision and insight, these ideas and the plans for carrying them out were accepted by the Administration which was in a strategic position to do so, and the Handicraft Project became a reality. As with all W.P.A. projects "to give work to unemployed persons who needed it" was the immediate aim. The specific aim of the Handicraft Project was to design and construct only such articles as would incorporate in their structure basic principles of Good Art to distribute these to public institutions which need them, and so bring to a great number of people a better understanding and an appreciation of the finer things in the handicrafts.
Elsa Ulbricht was teaching art at the Teachers College, when in 1935 she was appointed Project Coordinator. She remained on the faculty while undertaking her W.P.A. responsibilities, which at first required that she arrange work for 250 women. Clarence G. Hackett, Project Supervisor, later wrote:
Miss Ulbricht readily consented to undertake the enterprise, on the condition that highest standards of design would be maintained and that suitably trained persons would be placed in supervisory positions.
Thus was the tone of the project set at the very beginning. After two months of extensive planning, the project was established as: The W.P.A. HANDICRAFT PROJECT #1170, Sponsored by the Milwaukee State Teachers College.
As cooperating directors for the project, Elsa selected two women. The first was Mary June Kellogg who controlled all artistic aspects of design and production. No article could be fabricated without her approval. Anne Feldman directed and coordinated all supervisors, work units, and handled administrative details. Both were former students of Elsa's in the Division of Art Education. Their professional expertise and personal qualities were the main reasons for the success of the project.
The artists who were brought into the project to design the articles to be produced worked closely with the workers to acquaint them with the rationale behind the designs and to allow for suggestions and criticisms. Everything was analyzed from the standpoint of fitness for a specific use according to one of Miss Ulbricht's favorite classroom maxims: "Form follows Function." Prototype articles made by the workers with the proposed materials allowed ideas to be tested. In this way a product could be tried out, and no article was produced in quantity until the design was deemed satisfactory.
Original plans called for one department within the project to produce cloth dolls for distribution to institutions caring for children. Little did the project coordinators realize that they would be creating one of the most unusual and significant features of the whole program. Much consideration was given to the design of the dolls, determining proportions, colors, materials, and articulations appropriate to the functions for which they were intended. Specifically the dolls were to serve as learning tools as well as toys in order to help teach children how to dress themselves. Thus the dolls had to be sturdy, of washable cloth, and feature movable limbs.
A length of 22 inches as agreed upon as suitable for the new dolls. Elsa sculpted a basic head for the doll, but she was not satisfied with the results. She consulted Dick Wiken, an experienced wood carver and sculptor, as well as a fellow member of the Wisconsin Painters and Sculptors organization. At that time he was a supervisor in the Wood Unit of the W.P.A. He modeled a simple, pleasant head in clay, then cast it into a plaster of paris mold. Doll heads were fashioned by pressing pieces of cotton jersey into the mold. Being a knit fabric, the cloth stretched according to the mold's impressions. Then it was stiffened with starch so it would retain its molded features. The finished heads, although light in weight, were practically unbreakable and provided a smooth cloth surface for coloring the faces and painting detailed features. The inner portion of the head was stuffed with scraps of very finely clipped cotton material in order to support the exterior shell.
Starting with the ideas of doll maker Helen Clark, who served on the project, the design of the new doll body was as carefully thought out as the head. It used a peach-colored Percale cotton fabric formed into a nicely shaped child's torso with straight arms and legs attached. Filling out the body was cotton, Kapok, or in some cases, scraps of fabric firmly stuffed inside. A doubled fabric hinge, sewn with strong, durable hand stitches, joined the arms to the shoulder. The design committee devised a unique way of joining the legs to the torso. The base of the torso was flat, with a cardboard insert conforming to the flat portion of the upper legs cleverly hinged one to the other so as to allow the doll to sit or stand on its own. To assist standing, the bottom of the feet were also made flat and reinforced with cardboard. Fingers were machine-sewn into the mitten shaped hands after they had been stuffed. Carpet warp was used to make wigs of various styles. All dolls and clothes were stamped with the name of the project and many were dated as well. This provides a ready identification of the Milwaukee-made artifacts.
The Doll Department consisted of a supervisor and an average of about 30 women workers at one time. In addition to the dolls themselves, the department produced will designed doll clothes in keeping with the basic function of the dolls, to demonstrate to children how to dress themselves. Dolls of this type with "self- help clothing" were not available commercially, and an enthusiastic demand for the Milwaukee W.P.A. Dolls soon became apparent from W.P.A. nursery schools and other public institutions which cared for children. Hospitals desired dolls that were not too big or heavy for young, bedridden patients. All handicraft products were sold only to tax supported institutions. They willingly offered to provide the cost of materials so long as the project filled their needs.
The 22-inch dolls representing children of both sexes came in three basic varieties: "American," "Foreign," and "Character." The American dolls featured a wide selection of hair colors and styles of clothing. They were priced at $2.25 each, complete with one whole outfit. Additional sets of clothing could also be purchased. The Foreign and Character dolls were dressed in distinctive costumes, such as Polish, Norwegian, Dutch, Italian, and Scottish. Black dolls were included in the American and Character series. Special effort was taken for all of the dolls in the painting of features, styling the hair, and designing the clothing to create the impression of definite personalities. A four-year-old offered the greatest compliment when seeing a 22-inch doll in a kindergarten, he asked, "Who is she?" The dolls were never given names as such -- this was left tot he creative imagination of the individual children who played with them.
Additional designs of dolls, more the "rag doll" type, were subsequently created to complement the 22-inch dolls. The project used its cloth scraps to make 8-inch dolls, 4,000 of which were distributed one Christmas to needy children. Elizabeth Pasler designed a set of twin dolls, a boy and a girl, and they became steady sellers at $1.50 each. As with the 22-inch dolls, additional outfits were available for the twins. A variation of the girl twin, standing 19 inches tall, was produced beginning about 1939. The three main types of dolls were made concurrently and listed in catalogues which were periodically updated.
In 1942 federal support for the Milwaukee W.P.A. Handicraft Project was withdrawn, and the dolls were no longer produced. Milwaukee County continued the program under a much different format well into the 1970s. In the seven years of its existence under federal control, the project as a whole provided vitally needed employment and job training for over 5,000 men and women. Of this total between 700 and 900 served in the Doll Department. Most entered the program totally without skills. They encompassed all ages and ethnic backgrounds. Some could not speak English and others could not read or write. All had one thing in common: the need for work. They obtained skills in a variety of areas which would prove useful in industry and at home. Most importantly the way in which they learned and worked greatly lifted their morale and offered much satisfaction. For the community at large their efforts meant a plentitude of useful and beautiful toys for those who most needed them.
Today Milwaukee W.P.A. dolls, although rare, can be found in both public and private collections. The MPM is privileged to possess a fine, representative selection of the various types. Many of the surviving dolls remain in very good condition with their original clothes intact. It is refreshing to note that these dolls have accumulated many hours in playrooms as the beloved toys of children. This in stark contrast to "collector" dolls that must be in "mint" condition, seemingly untouched by human hands, to be appreciated -- cold but valuable objects. The W.P.A. dolls have proven their durability and remain as charming as ever, only improved by the patina of time.