The American Girl Dolls

In 1986, Pleasant T. Rowland, a former educator and publisher of educational materials, founded Pleasant Company which is headquartered in Middleton, Wisconsin. Pleasant Company produced and marketed three 18-inch dolls - Samantha, Kirsten and Molly - each from a different period in American History. Each girl also had historically accurate outfits and accessory sets which were tied into books depicting their individual backgrounds. The first three stories of each character's eventual 6 book series were originally written by Danielle Steele. The American Girl Collection was originally available only through mail-order catalogs. Several more historical dolls were added (Felicity, Addy, Josefina) and by 1997 their combined stories spanned periods in U.S. history from 1764 to 1944.