childhood studies

It goes without saying that people bring us interesting things as artifact donations. As often as possible, we try and get the story that goes with the interesting artifacts, in order to make them even more interesting. Sometimes, though, the full story of an object is not known to anyone still living, and the most that we can get is tantalizing hints. 

The doll pictured here falls into the latter category.

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It was brought to us as part of a collection of things found inside the walls of an Anoka house. The family who owns the house had remodeled in 1980, and found a number of

When Minnesota passed the law creating the Minnesota State Public School for Dependent and Neglected Children in 1885, it was created to be transitional housing for children placed in its care by county courts. Even then, they realized that the best place for a child was in a family setting. Children were sent to the State School to get healthy, get educated, to get good moral training, and then, ideally, to be adopted or placed on a family farm. However, adoption rates were low and children were often placed out under an indenture contract. Some of these situations were good; many others were