American Stockinette "Missionary Rag Baby" by Julia Beecher with Intriguing Provenance

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20" (51 cm.) Softly stuffed stockinette doll with stitch-shaped definition of eye sockets, nose and mouth, center chin seam, painted facial features, blue eyes, all-around lashes, defined nostrils, philtrum and lips, blonde yarn stitched-on tight curls, very plump body with stitch jointing at shoulders, hips and knees, defined fingers and toes, antique baby gown and bonnet. Condition: generally excellent. Comments: attributed to the missionary project of Julia Beecher, of Elmira, New York, circa 1890, sister-in-law of Harriet Beecher Stowe, who authored Uncle Tom's Cabin, and of Henry Ward Beecher, the famed abolitionist. Stockinette dolls were made in the sewing circle of the Elmira, New York, Congregational Church 1893 to 1910, with proceeds donated to missionary groups, thus earning the dolls the name of Missionary Rag Babies. According to an attached note with this doll, it was made by Mrs. Mary K. Smith of Cincinnatus, New York, who was likely a member of that sewing circle. Value Points: the very rare early cloth doll, with intriguing historical specifics, is wonderfully created and preserved. The doll is featured in the book, The Rose Unfolds, by Rosalie Whyel and Susan Hedrick, page 78.