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Dolls were a common toy in the new nation. They were often hand carved out of wood and then clothed in scraps of material left over from old clothing. It was not uncommon for these dolls to be placed in a small coffin instead of a cradle. The coffin was a reminder for children of the nearness of death, infant mortality being very high, and the fact that they should be “good” in order to assure the salvation of their soul. During play- time, children would often re-enact funerals using their dolls and coffins. Most children had lost someone close to them and were familiar with the rituals associated with burial.
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| The toy coffin for a child's doll was a reminder of mortality and the necessity of being "good" in order to attain salvation |
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| Miss Goody Two Shoes was a character from a children's book popular in the 1780s. |
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| Severe damage was caused to young female children by forcing them to wear corsets. |
Baby bottles during the 1780s were made out of pewter, even the nipple shaped end of the bottle was made of this metal. However, breast- feeding was still the preferred way of feeding a baby because it was cheaper and, most important, doing so provided an easy means of birth control. On average, women married between the ages of 18-20, and had, on average, 7-10 babies.
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| Pewter baby bottle |
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| Colonial families tended to be large by today's standards. |
Most dolls in the American colonies were not playthings for children, but were used by milliners (hat makers) and tailors and clothing shops to display in their windows the latest styles and fashions. Dolls for children were considered a luxury and were not a regular or usual element in their lives. Children did fly kites, played tag, went sledding and skating in the winter. Children would collect acorns and, with a little imagination, turn them into a tiny tea set. Colonial children played some games that children still play today such as “blind man’s bluff”, “ring around a rosie” and “hide and seek.” Colonial children also played the game of “hop scotch” but referred to it as “”Scotch hopping.” Many people played chess, but “checkers” was more popular and was called “checks.”
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| Hopscotch was a popular game of colonial children, and remains populartoday, although it originated as a training exercise for Roman soldiers in ancient times during which they practiced the footwork necessary for them to move and fight quickly and in unison. |
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