Childhood toys
This is a quote from the internet; “The famous Robertson’s Golliwog symbol appeared in 1910 after a trip to the US to set up a plant in Boston. His son John bought a golliwog doll there. For some reason this started to appear first on their price lists and was then adopted as their trade mark.” “It no longer features and is considered racially charged.”
Does anyone remember the character? I have a knitted version, knitted by my mum in 1963 when I was just a baby, it is showing a little wear and tear and it’s ready for another Sunday sewing repair session. The stuffing is kapok and the white wool is very discoloured. The red is faded but the black is still jet back. Made from pure wool I do wonder about the different dyes they used 60 years ago.
All I think of when I look at my lovely knitted toy is the love and emotion that went into it when my mum knitted it for her first born, mum was living in holland as dad was in the forces and I often wonder if knitting was mums happy place when dad was at work ? This was my first introduction to hand knitting.
Do you have a treasured childhood toy? Share with us your stories in the comments below.
I remember the Robertson’s Gollywog. My sister amassed a number of golliwog broches, she had to collect so many (stickers) to get one. No idea where they went unfortunately.