Artifact of the Week: Frozen Charlotte Doll

Table Of Content

• Creepy porcelain dolls named Frozen Charlotte were sold in tiny caskets and baked into cakes
• Frozen Charlotte Dolls Were Inspired By A Young Woman Who Froze While Riding To A Ball
• Frozen Charlotte Dolls Were Sold In Tiny Caskets
• Free Shipping on orders $150+
• For Sale: Gold From One of the Worst Shipwrecks in U.S. History
• Was Frozen Charlotte Real

When Americans first saw the hard, white bisque dolls, the association with the unfortunate Charlotte must have seemed obvious. Sometimes sold for as little as a penny, Frozen Charlottes (and the occasional male Charlie) were made by the million. Everyday Free Standard Shipping with a minimum order of $150 or more. Purchase total must equal or exceed the minimum order requirement to qualify. Once qualified, free shipping will automatically apply in your shopping bag at checkout.

Creepy porcelain dolls named Frozen Charlotte were sold in tiny caskets and baked into cakes

“The Victorian doll who represented a frozen woman” has become an example of “hidden” or “hushed-up” history, the type of bizarre “did you know … ? ” factoid we believe and share without asking for primary sources. Doll collector/historian Nancy Shepard cautioned about this intertwining of fact and fiction in 1952.

Frozen Charlotte Dolls Were Inspired By A Young Woman Who Froze While Riding To A Ball

Larger examples were often used in the manner of a traditional doll, as a plaything. Some were even designed to be brought into the bath with a child as they could float on their backs and would not be damaged by water. Smaller sizes were commonly inserted into cakes or puddings as charms, in much the same fashion as a Mardi Gras king cake which traditionally has a baby figurine hidden inside; to find it afforded the discoverer promises of future prosperity. Although we have evidence that 19th-century Americans (and others) sometimes placed penny dolls (and other items) into cakes, there’s no evidence that they ever considered these objects as symbols of frozen women. Many people find porcelain dolls, in particular, to be eerie or creepy. Despite their treasured status amongst doll collectors, the stiff but uncannily human features of these dolls are often likened to corpses.

Frozen Charlotte Dolls Were Sold In Tiny Caskets

For those among us with this fear towards porcelain dolls, the Frozen Charlotte may be the most unsettling of all. A Frozen Charlotte is a petite porcelain baby, standing anywhere from 1″ to 18″ tall. These dolls are usually made from unglazed porcelain, bisque, or China. They have a matte, ivory-colored finish, which sets them apart from glossy porcelain dolls.

Design vignettes with a Victorian flair, placing Frozen Charlotte dolls alongside other nostalgic items like vintage books, keys, or shoe forms. Create captivating displays in a curio cabinet or glass display case, protecting the dolls while providing a charming and visually captivating arrangement. Transform Frozen Charlotte dolls into unique pieces of jewelry or accessories.

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Additional charges and exclusions may apply for rush shipping, shipping outside of the US or Canada, and shipping large items. Offer not valid at Indigo, or Chapters™ retail locations or websites. No refunds or adjustments on previous purchases or orders in progress that have not yet shipped. These little dolls can be anywhere from less than an inch up to 18 inches tall, and now turn up on beaches as a highly-sought-after find.

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Dive into the captivating journey of Frozen Charlotte dolls, uncovering their intriguing past and how these tiny porcelain treasures bring a touch of vintage whimsy to modern decor. With an annual average temperature of 61.5 degrees and the annual average precipitation of 43 inches distributed evenly throughout the year, weather in the Queen City is fair and mild. Winter is welcoming, spring and fall are transformative, and summer is sunny and bright.

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Plus, many of the dolls for sale today on sites like eBay and Etsy are not pre-owned dolls, but rather those excavated in Germany. That the name “Frozen Charlotte” was coined within the doll-collecting community sometime slightly before or around World War 2 is evident in doll collector/historian Eleanor St. George’s 1948 book, Dolls of Yesterday [see also Note 4]. He stripped the mantle off her brow, And the pale stars on her shone, And quickly into the lighted hall, Her helpless form was born.

Adorn your Christmas tree with these miniature treasures or use them in your festive table settings to add a touch of nostalgic charm.

When they arrived, her more-bundled-up beau found her frozen to death in the sleigh. The story says Charlie died of a broken heart soon afterward, and they were buried together in a single tomb. These tiny, pale, porcelain nightmares were pottery dolls manufactured in Germany in 1850, and intended for children to play with during bath time.

The male version of the porcelain doll earned the name Frozen Charlie, likely after Charlotte's beau who perished of a broken heart and shared her tomb. In 1840, The New York Observer published an article about a horrific New Year's Eve accident. According to the article, "A young woman, whose name is given as Miss _____, was frozen to death while riding twenty miles to a ball on the eve of January 1, 1840." The Germans manufactured the porcelain dolls to float in the bath, a 19th-century rubber ducky. The dolls would float on their backs in bathwater, entertaining children during their baths. There isn’t a single reference (in magazines, books, newspapers, or anything else for that matter) of these porcelain dolls being called “Frozen Charlottes” in the entire 19th and early 20th centuries.

It was likely coined by doll collectors as late as the mid-1940s, when mentions of “Frozen Charlotte dolls” in ads, newspapers, books, and magazines skyrocketed, and soon became the common way to refer to these Victorian playthings. Despite what we moderns believe, nor did the legend of frozen Charlotte serve as inspiration for the creation of Frozen Charlotte Russe, a favorite 19th-century dessert. The trifle-like treat, popular into the 20th century, is merely a cold (or icebox) version of Charlotte Russe, which is based on the still older and simpler charlotte, a type of molded cake known since the 18th century. The increasing prevalence of iceboxes in homes and restaurants in the United States in the last half of the 19th century drove the creation of many cold desserts, which could now be served all year long.

Their popularity soared in Britain and America, where they were baked into cake as a nice (or not so nice, depending on your tolerance for creepy little porcelain girls) surprise for kids. The song was itself based on a poem by American writer Seba Smith, who first published the poem in a Maine newspaper in 1843. His poem was in turn inspired by an account published in a New York newspaper in 1840 detailing just such an incident. The doll's coloration is sometimes believed to be a reflection of the young lady's frosty demise. All mentions of these dolls from the time period call them “penny dolls,” not “Frozen Charlottes.” So when did the name we use today actually become connected to these little porcelain dolls?

Today, Martha Stewart provides a recipe for Frozen Charlottes, though without the backstory of the cautionary tale of a 19th-century girl freezing on a sleigh ride. The connection between the name and the dolls lies in the fact that, like the unfortunate Charlotte in the song, these dolls are often depicted as being barefoot and without clothing. The popularity of the ballad likely contributed to the adoption of the name for these small porcelain dolls, which began to emerge around the same time.

They are formed as one solid piece and have no joints, thus giving rise to the name “Frozen”. Some have dark-painted hair and red lips but they are otherwise as white as snow. So, while it makes a compelling and delightfully morbid origin story, none of the children who actually played with these dolls knew of a connection between their favorite toy and a foolish young woman’s frostbitten corpse. And even though they’ve lost a bit of their historical creepiness, don’t let that stop you from being excited if you find a porcelain doll on the shore. The poem was a hit, as it touched on the dangers of vanity and not listening to your parents.