The History of the American Girl Doll

History

• In 1986, former history teacher Pleasant T. Rowland created the American Girl Collection. Through catalogs, she sold fictional books of heroic girls, with dolls to accompany each book.

The Facts

• Mattel Inc. acquired the American Girl Collection in 1998 for $770 million. Rowland became the vice chair of the Board of Mattel Inc.

Types

• Originally, there were nine dolls set in different historical eras; in 1995 two collections were added: Just Like You® and Bitty Baby®.

Retail

• The price of an American Girl doll starts at $42 for dolls in the Bitty Baby® collection, but most dolls are $95 for a package of the doll and accompanying book. All American Girl merchandise may be purchased at retail stores throughout the United States, through catalogs and via the company website, americangirl.com.

Growth

• Since the birth of the American Girl doll, Rowland and Mattel Inc. have sold 127 million books and 16 million dolls. The American Girl magazine has a circulation of 600,000 and 52 million people visit the American Girl website each year.