6 Black Doll History That Will Surprise You
When I first started selling Black dolls, I thought I knew everything about them. I was wrong.
The more I dug into their history, the more I realized these beautiful figures carry stories of love, resistance, courtship, and even legal battles that changed America. Some of these facts will surprise you, others might move you.
1. The “two-headed” Topsy-Turvy doll and hidden messages
If you’ve ever come across a Topsy-Turvy doll, you’ll know how strange and haunting they are. One side of the doll has a white child’s face and dress. Flip the skirt over, and you’ll find a Black child’s face underneath.
Historians believe these dolls emerged during the era of slavery. For enslaved Black children, they might have had a secret way to own a “forbidden” white doll, something they couldn’t otherwise have.
For white children, the Black doll represented a “mammy” caretaker. It’s hard not to feel both sadness and awe when you think about how one doll could hold two completely different meanings depending on who was playing with it.
You can still see Topsy-Turvy dolls in museum collections today, including at the National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington, D.C.
2. Dolls as fertility charms and protection across Africa
Dolls have been used as fertility charms, educational tools about gender and sexuality, and as markers of a girl’s transition into womanhood and motherhood.
In Ghana (among the Fanti people of the Akan group), women carried a wooden doll called the Akua'ba doll or “Akuaba” on their backs as though it were a baby, hoping to conceive or to ensure the attractiveness of a future child. These dolls often have a large, flat, disc-like head and slender body. Also, these dolls were lovingly treated, washed, “plaited” in hairstyle, and carried in daily life.
Even today, you’ll find Akuaba replicas sold as charms of luck and prosperity.
Also, there is a tradition of the “Ikoku” or “Ngide” fertility doll. According to DeeBeeGee's Virtual Black Doll Museum:
“This type of doll is carved by the father for a maturing daughter; the Turkana believe that if the girl treats the doll as a real baby, she will successfully bear a child.”
3. Early Black dolls as resistance and self-love & the “Doll Tests” that changed U.S. law
When mass-produced dolls depicted only white children (blonde hair, fair skin), Black families often turned to handmade dolls created by African American women. These dolls were acts of pride. By crafting their own, they rejected the harmful stereotypes of the time and affirmed Black children’s worth.
In the 1940s, psychologists Kenneth Bancroft Clark and Mamie Phipps Clark conducted what became known as the "doll tests." They showed Black children a white doll and a Black doll, then asked simple questions: Which doll is nice? Which doll is bad? Which doll looks like you?
The results were heartbreaking. Many Black children chose the white doll as "nice" and rejected the Black doll that looked like them. The Clarks' research revealed how deeply segregation damaged Black children's self-esteem and sense of identity.
Their findings were cited by the U.S. Supreme Court in the 1954 decision Brown v. Board of Education, where the Chief Justice noted that segregation “generates a feeling of inferiority” that affects children’s hearts and minds.
A doll can reflect how a child sees themselves in the world. For many Black families, creating, choosing, and celebrating a Black doll was a powerful declaration of self-worth.
4. The first widely sold Black doll with Afrocentric features
In 1968, the Los Angeles cooperative Shindana Toys released the doll known as Baby Nancy doll: a Black baby doll with an afro, realistic Black features, and intended not to be a white mould “dipped in chocolate”.
Within three months of that first year, Baby Nancy sold around 15,000 units. In 2020, Baby Nancy was inducted into the National Toy Hall of Fame.
I love this story because it shows that representation matters, commercially and culturally. The success of Baby Nancy was a signal that Black children (and families) wanted dolls that looked like them and reflected their identity. Her arrival shook up the toy industry: she met consumer demand that had been ignored, and she offered Black children a doll that looked like them in an era when mass-market dolls rarely did.
5. The first “Black Barbie” came later than you’d think
It might surprise you to learn that the iconic doll company Barbie only released its first official Black Barbie with specific Black mould features in 1980.
Before that, in 1967, you had a “Colored Francie” (which was essentially a white mould painted a different colour), and in 1968, the doll “Christie” (Barbie’s friend) came out with African-American features.
It wasn’t until 1980 that Barbie’s first Black version with her own unique sculpt and proper Black facial features appeared, marketed with the box slogan “She’s Black! She’s beautiful! She’s dynamite!”
6. Dolls as courtship notes and rites of passage
Among the most fascinating black doll facts and history is that among the Ndebele people of the Southern Africa region, dolls played a role in courtship. A young man who wanted to propose would sometimes place a Ceremonial doll outside the hut of the woman he loved. The doll spoke for him: “I’m interested”. It is a symbol of intent, a non-verbal “message” of courtship.
Then, when the woman was ready to marry, her maternal grandmother often crafted a “fertility” or initiation beaded doll for her, which she would care for and name.
Beautiful black dolls from Rufina Designs
I make and sell Black dolls at Rufina Designs, and every time someone buys one, I can’t help but think about this long history, from love letters to resistance, from fertility charms to courtroom evidence.
Dolls have always mirrored how we see ourselves. That’s why Black dolls matter. They tell children they’re enough, just as they are. They remind us that beauty isn’t confined to one shade, one texture, or one story.
And maybe, that’s the most important fact of all.
References
National Museum of African American History and Culture – Topsy-Turvy Dolls
The Strong National Museum of Play – Baby Nancy Inducted into Toy Hall of Fame (2020)
NAACP Legal Defense Fund – Brown v. Board of Education Historical Context
Mattel Archives – The First Black Barbie (1980)
South African Ndebele Cultural Heritage – Beaded Courtship Dolls
Ghanaian Cultural Heritage Studies – Akuaba Fertility Dolls
Turkana Ethnographic Records – Dolls as Educational Tools in East Africa
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Hi, I’m Rufina,
Back in 2018, I turned my love for crafting African accessories into Rufina Designs, right from my bedroom. It’s been an exciting ride ever since as I’ve delved into the vibrant world of African accessories. For me, it’s more than just a business venture – it’s a celebration of my Ghanaian heritage and a way to support our talented local artisans across Africa.
