n 1900, Eaton's created a
series of dolls known to millions as Eaton's Beauty dolls. A doll was
featured each year in the company's Fall and Winter catalogue, which
was delivered to homes across the country. The Eaton's Beauty was the
dream of many little girls, who eagerly awaited the arrival of a new
catalogue.
The doll usually wore a chemise or a Princess slip, and sported a red
ribbon with gold lettering identifying it as an Eaton's Beauty. The
early dolls, which had leather bodies and bisque shoulderheads, were
replaced by dolls with bisque heads and ball-jointed composition bodies.
During the First World War, European dolls were not available, so in
1915 and 1916 the Eaton's Beauty was made by the Dominion Toy
Manufacturing Company of Toronto. During the Second World War, the doll
was once again made in Canada, this time by the Reliable Toy Company of
Toronto.
In the fifties and sixties, the Eaton's Beauty was an ordinary vinyl
play doll, so it lost some of its charm. In the late seventies, the
company offered limited editions of bisque dolls for the benefit of
customers eager to add one more Beauty to their collections.
Type of doll used as an Eaton's Beauty in 1900
ca. 1900
Armand Marseille, Köppelsdorf, Germany
Bisque shoulderhead (#370), leather body
Gift of Miss Hilda Wilson, Ottawa, Ontario
CMC D-1371
Type of doll used as an Eaton's Beauty in 1905
1905-1906
Armand Marseille, Köppelsdorf, Germany
Bisque head (#390), composition body
Gift of Mrs. C. Moore, Ottawa, Ontario
CMC D-1073
Eaton's Beauty Doll
1924
Armand Marseille, Köppelsdorf, Germany
Bisque head (#390), composition body
Gift of Elizabeth Collard (née Forde), Montreal, Quebec
CMC 978.136.1
Elizabeth Forde's father gave her this doll when she was ill.
Joyce Marie, an Eaton Beauty Doll
1991
Dynasty Doll Co.
Bisque head, arms and legs, cloth body
Limited edition of 480
Courtesy of E. Strahlendorf, Hamilton, Ontario
L2455.008
Charlotte Rose, an Eaton Beauty Doll
1992, Limited edition of 400
Designed by Yvonne Richardson, Toronto, Ontario
Made by the Dynasty Doll Co.
Bisque shoulderhead, arms and legs, cloth body
Courtesy of E. Strahlendorf, Hamilton, Ontario
L2455.019