Doll News Summer 2018 - 81

The printing on the box stated: "This is an Original Julie Ann REG. U. S. Pat.
Off. Hand-Painted Doll Shreve Island Plantation Shreveport, LA." My quest for
information about these interesting dolls took a lucky turn. Further research
proved that the doll was made of "bakelite,"' an early form of brittle plastic.
There was a small sticker on the box bearing the name of the shop in which
the doll was originally sold. A search for the patent (without a number) and
the shop proved unsuccessful. When did the production of "bakelite" begin?
The popular period for "bakelite" jewelry spanned the 1920s into the 1930s.
The history of the Julie Ann doll dates from the 1930s.
At the Shreveport doll show, a friend asked to see my new treasure. She
looked at the small box and exclaimed that she knew the owners of the
Shreve Island Plantation. Wow - this was exciting! In hopes of acquiring
more information about the Julie Ann dolls, a request was submitted,
contact information was exchanged and a short time later, a package arrived
from the family surrounding these dolls. Mr. Paul A. Mayer, son of the
original owners of Shreve Island Plantation, sent information, photos of the
home and a map of the island, along with his contact information. We have
since then spoken in a delightful interview session.
So, the story begins. The doll business was a family project conceived
and executed in the depth of the Depression around 1932, in hopes of
saving the family home and property. The Shreve Island Plantation was
a typical cotton farm operation. The price of cotton had fallen so low that
many farmers were in danger of losing their land and everything else. The
Mayer family was forced to ﬁnd alternatives to generate additional funds.
Mr. Mayer's mother, Mrs. Mattie Robards Mayer, was the widow of August
Mayer. She had six children to support and raise by herself. The oldest
was Julia Mayer Cline. Randolph Mayer was the second oldest, married to
Ruth Annan, daughter of a local architect. Ruth's sister, Margaret was very
talented and on occasion she would construct a model of a home designed
by her father, to show his clients how the home or building would look once
built. She had a natural talent for art. Mr. Mayer was not sure who came up
with the idea of producing dolls for sale, whether it was Margaret or Julia.
Apparently, Julia agreed to pay Margaret Annan, who designed the small
3-¾-inch wooden dolls and was given a small royalty for each doll. Julia
enlisted the help of ﬁve or six of her lady friends to do the sewing. The
ladies would sit on the upstairs porch and sew while chatting away with

A map of the Shreve Island Plantation was
provided by Mr. Paul Mayer.

A photo of the Plantation House features the
upstairs porch where various lady friends sat
and made the doll dresses. Courtesy of Mr.
Paul Mayer

Julia Mayer Cline,
pictured on the
right, along with
Margaret Annan,
on the left, were
the creators of
the Julie Ann doll.
Courtesy of
Mr. Paul Mayer

DOLL NEWS * UFDC.ORG

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Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Doll News Summer 2018
