Edwin M. Knowles Doll: Mary Mary Quite Contrary
Name/Title
Edwin M. Knowles Doll: Mary Mary Quite ContraryEntry/Object ID
2026.129.01Tags
Classic Literature, Doll, Edwin M Knowles, Heroines from the Fairy Tale Forests, North America, Popular CultureDescription
Edwin M. Knowles Doll, "Mary, Mary, Quite Contrary." The doll depicts the literary character of Mary Mary Quite Contrary. She is wearing a green dress patterned with white and pink flowers. Under, she wears white bloomers that are tied with green ribbon, white stockings, and pink shoes with pink bows. Over top of her dress she wears a white pinafore style apron, it has two pockets, both with green bows, and trimmed in eyelet material. The hem and shoulder areas of the apron also are trimmed in the eyelet material. At the waist, there is green stitching and a green bow. She also carries a white bucket with pink flowers containing white, blue, yellow, and pink flowers, and she has a pink watering can with white flowers. She also has a pink bow in her hair with white flowers on it. The doll is blonde and has blue eyes. She has a China head, arms, and legs, and a fabric body.Use
Collectable itemContext
Edwin M. Knowles was born in 1869, the son of Isaac Watt Knowles, founder of Knowles, Taylor & Knowles Co. (one of the largest American pottery companies at the turn of the 20th century). A graduate of Harvard, Edwin took control of Potters Supply Company in East Liverpool, Ohio in 1890. Ten years later, Knowles founded Knowles China Company, which became Edwin M. Knowles China Co; the manufacturing was centered in Chester, West Virginia, but expanded to Newell, WV a decade later. In 1931, the company would consolidate to a single plant in Newell. These two plants, operating at once, helped cement West Virginia’s place as the third-largest state producing pottery in the United States, behind Ohio and New Jersey. Though the pottery was made in West Virginia, the company advertised its location as East Liverpool, Ohio, as exhibited in the 1910 advertisement below. Edwin died in 1943, and the company folded in 1962. In the 1980s and ‘90s, the Edwin M. Knowles name resurfaced, copyrighted by a group with no connection to the original company; this new iteration of Edwin M. Knowles created and sold collectible plates, often depicting scenes from famous films like Gone With the Wind or The Sound of Music. Edwin M. Knowles produced a popular line of collectible porcelain dolls primarily between the mid-1980s and early 1990s, with most identified, limited-edition, and Ashton-Drake Galleries-distributed pieces dating from 1986 to 1992.Collection
Edwin M. KnowlesCataloged By
Kat BezaireCategory
Doll