A Message to Parents from Pleasant T. Rowland

Nov 4

From the moment the first catalogue was sent in the mail, and up till the late 1990s, each Pleasant Company was accompanied by a message to parents by founder Pleasant T. Rowland. We invite you to read some of these messages from the catalogues that we have within our collection.

Pleasant Company Catalogue, 1987

A Message To Parents

Deep in the basement of a small museum lies a tattered, water-stained doll trunk. Open the dusty lid and the long-ago childhood of some lucky young girl comes instantly to life.

Tucked gently inside is a beautiful porcelain doll--dearly loved and much played with. Dressed in blue silk and surrounded by marvelous accessories, this doll and her tiny treasures were the most cherished possessions of their owner-possessions so special that they were put away until some faraway day when her own little girl could delight in them.

I discovered this trunk by chance more than a year after I had begun working on The American Girls Collection. It served as a powerful reminder of why I had begun the collection, and what I hoped it would accomplish.

At an age when girls are old enough to read and still love to play, they need books and dolls that capture their imaginations and are worth caring for. The stories in The American Girls Collection come alive with beautiful dolls and period doll clothes. The doll accessories are replicas of real things found in times gone by. They are quality pieces — not plastic playthings — and are made for children over eight years old to treasure.

I hope The American Girls Collection will be dearly loved and well played with and then passed down to other generations of girls tomorrow--a reminder that growing up in America is, has been, and can always be an experience to treasure.

Pleasant T. Rowland

Pleasant Company Catalogue, 1991

The New Baby Collection: About Inspiration and Dedication
Throughout my years as author and product developer I have frequently been asked where my ideas come from. Most of the time I honestly don't know. But The New Baby Collection is an exception. I do remember the moment of its inception.

Unlike most ideas that develop slowly, quietly over time. The New Baby Collection came together all at once after a casual conversation I had with Beth Hoffmann. Pleasant Company's controller. She was expecting her second baby at the time. In passing, she mentioned that Emily, her two year old, was having trouble understanding what this new baby would mean to her life, and accepting the fact that she would no longer be the sole focus of attention in the family. "If only there were a book or something to help her," mused Beth. From such tiny seeds do big ideas grow!

Beth's "new baby" Adam is now 18 months old and, of course, Emily has grown to love him. During those months I have written Our New Baby, the book that Beth wished for. And the talented team at Pleasant Company has created the doll and accessories that bring the book to life, giving youngsters a chance to play out the lessons of love and caring that are taught in its pages.

I am surrounded by bright, young, dedicated women like Beth at Pleasant Company, for more that 85% of our employees are female. Over the years I have watched many of them go through pregnancy, take maternity leave, and return to work juggling the demands of job and family with grace and good spirit. The New Baby Collection is dedicated to them--with respect for all they give their families, with appreciation for all they give Pleasant Company, and with affection for all they have given me. They are constant inspirations.

Pleasant T. Rowland

Pleasant Company Catalogue: A Special Edition Cover for Felicity | Spring 1991 | American Girl, LLC., U.S. | Object ID: FMSP1991

Pleasant Company Catalogue, Spring 1991

How to Bring History Alive: A Special Message to Parents

When I first heard about Williamsburg I was probably eight years old. I had been poring over the family photo album, lingering long on my parents' wedding pictures, imagining myself, as all little girls do, someday wearing that beautiful gown with its froth of airy veil. Today, many years later, I can still remember the blurry snapshots of Mother and Daddy on their honeymoon in front of a picket fence, a windmill, and a rose-covered arbor. They were in Williamsburg, the caption said, a place forever etched in my childhood memory as a pretty place for happy times.

Years passed, and one day I did wear that same wedding gown, and one day, many years later, I did go to Williamsburg. This time I was a corporate wife accompanying my husband to a business meeting, pleased to be going to that place of the snapshot memories.

Little did I know what awaited me. The picket fences and windmill were still there, but nothing had prepared me for the depth of detail, the breadth of vision that I found in Colonial Williamsburg. It was more than a pretty place for happy times, it was simply the best living classroom of American history I could ever imagine.

Everywhere I looked the past came alive—not in an imaginary fantasy world, for Colonial Williamsburg is not peopled with cartoon look-alikes or landscaped with amusement park attractions. It is a world pulsing with real life stories.

As I strolled through Williamsburg that early, gentle morning, I realized that George Washington, Patrick Henry, and Thomas Jefferson had walked the same street more than 200 years before. They, too, had nodded to the apothecary sweeping his front steps and to the maid hurrying to the smokehouse for breakfast bacon. They, too, had dodged the child skipping along beside his hoop and the horses clip-clopping to the blacksmith. They, too, had spotted the gardener hoeing his beans before the day got too hot in the very same garden I was looking at. It is the juxtaposition of these simple, homely details of everyday colonial life alongside the great dreams of liberty and independence first forged in the grand public buildings of this place, that makes Williamsburg such a stunning experience, such an astonishing brush with history.

The idea for The American Girls Collection was born there as I sat under an arbor to rest and to absorb all I had seen and felt. How could I as a teacher help bring history alive for children in the same way Colonial Williamsburg had just brought it alive for me? How could I help children see that through all the changes wrought in the dailiness of American life over the past two hundred years, the vision of our forefathers has endured?

I created The American Girls Collection to celebrate those changes and to honor that vision, to bring the remarkable story of our nation's past alive for a new generation of American girls. It will be wonderful fun to join them in Williamsburg this August, to watch the stories of Felicity and the magic of that extraordinary place ignite their imaginations as it did mine so long ago.

Pleasant T. Rowland, President

Pleasant Company: The American Girls Collection. A Special Edition Catalogue for Samantha Collectors | Spring 1991 | American Girl, LLC., U.S. | Object ID: SPSP1991

Pleasant Company: A Special Edition Catalogue for Samantha Collectors, Spring 1991

At an age when girls are old enough to read and still love to play, they need books and dolls that capture their imaginations and are worth caring for. The stories in The American Girls Collection come alive with beautiful dolls and period doll clothes. The doll accessories are replicas of real things found in times gone by. They are quality pieces—not plastic playthings—and are made for children over eight years old to treasure.

I hope The American Girls Collection will be dearly loved and well played with and then passed down to other generations of girls tomorrow—a reminder that growing up in America is, has been, and can always be an experience to treasure.

Pleasant T. Rowland

Pleasant Company Catalogue, Holiday 1992

A Celebration of Girlhood

I loved the first ten years of my own childhood. I was curious, confident, contented, and, by the end of fourth grade, far enough ahead in school for my teachers to suggest that I skip fifth. My parents were proud, and I was complimented. So, on to junior high I went, with little consideration for anything except the greater academic challenge that lay ahead.

It was a poor decision, one that all of us regretted ever after. No longer was it safe to be me—to dress my dolls, put on plays with my friends, learn to crochet with my grandmother, or spend long hours flung across my bed immersed in a book. I was surrounded by older girls who were absorbed in boyfriends, make-up, and other mysteries of preadolescence, and my own interests seemed unimportant and foolish. My childhood came crashing to an abrupt end.

Now it seems that a whole generation of young girls is being rushed headlong into adolescence. They are overwhelmed by media messages that glamorize "growing up" at the expense of growing. Concerned parents and teachers know there is a price to be paid but find little to offer in the way of appealing, appropriate alternatives. For just this reason, I created The American Girls Collection, which now proudly includes American Girl magazine.

The American Girls Collection is a celebration of girlhood—yesterday and today. The books about Felicity, Kirsten, Samantha, and Molly bring history alive by showing today's young readers how growing up in America has changed over the past 200 years. But America's past is rich and various, and there are countless stories of other American girls to be told. American Girl magazine will tell those stories. Most important, it will tell the stories of today's American girl, celebrating her traditions, her diversity, and the vast, new choices that are hers. For this is her own special moment in our country's history—and the moment of her childhood when she will grow in ways that will mark her ever after.

Pleasant T. Rowland, Publisher, American Girl

Pleasant Company Catalogue, Spring 1996

Welcome to the Club!

The American Girls Club & Historical Society

I am pleased and very proud to introduce The American Girls Club & Historical Society. I believe it captures the very essence of Pleasant Company’s mission to educate and entertain American girls. It is the most exciting program we have ever created.

Pleasant T. Rowland, President, Pleasant Company

Pleasant Company Catalogue, Holiday 1996

Ten years ago this fall, Pleasant Company mailed its first catalogue. Just 24 pages long, that fledgling effort introduced The American Girls Collection to a generation of young girls. With that offering of books, dolls, dresses, and other delights, I hoped to give girls an understanding of their country's history and of the traditions they share with girls from generations past.

Last year we expanded our vision with a new product line called American Girl. With bright books and a lively magazine, with dolls that reflect the unique beauty of every girl, with great gear for school and play, we linked past to present and empowered girls to see that they, too, are a part of history.

Ten years ago I never imagined all that Pleasant Company would grow to be today. Millions of girls and their families have embraced our products and our mission, and the thousands of letters they send each year thank us for the difference we have made in their lives. How grateful I am for the support they have given us every step of the way. It has been a profound pleasure to serve them.

As our second decade begins, we at Pleasant Company dedicate our efforts and renew our commitment to honoring and celebrating American girls, past and present. We are very proud of them.

Pleasant T. Rowland

Pleasant Company Catalogue, Spring 1997

Pleasant Company was created ten years ago with a singular mission—to provide girls with beautiful books, dolls, and pastimes that celebrate the experience of growing up as an American girl. It was my hope to prolong and protect those fleeting years of childhood when girls are old enough to read and still love to play.

The American Girls Collection was created to give girls an understanding of their past and a sense of pride in the traditions they share with girls of yesterday. Over the past decade, we have received thousands of grateful letters telling of time shared between generations because of The American Girls Collection.

Other letters urged us to expand our vision from the past to the present to help girls address the challenges of growing up in the '90s. Our response is an entirely new collection—The American Girl of Today. With bright books and a lively magazine, with dolls that reflect the beauty of every girl, with great gear for school and play, we link past to present and empower girls to take pride in this, their moment in history.

Pleasant T. Rowland

Pleasant Company Catalogue, Spring 1997

Peasant Company was founded in 1986 with a singular mission—to provide girls with beautiful books, dolls, and pastimes that celebrate the experience of growing up as an American girl. It was my hope to prolong and protect those fleeting years of childhood when girls are old enough to read and still love to play.

Other letters urged us to expand our vision from the past to the present to help girls address the challenges of growing up in the '90s. Our response is an entirely new collection—The American Girl of Today. With bright books and a lively magazine, with dolls that reflect the beauty of every girl, with great gear for school or play, and athletic clothing to encourage and celebrate girls' sports and team spirit, we link past to present and empower girls to take pride in this, their moment in history.

Pleasant T. Rowland

Pleasant Company Catalogue, Holiday 1997

Other letters urged us to expand our vision from the past to the present to help girls address the challenges of growing up in the '90s. Our response is an entirely new collection celebrating the American Girl of Today. With bright books, a lively magazine, and dolls that reflect the beauty of every girl, we link past to present and empower girls to take pride in this, their moment in history.

Finally, we introduced the Bitty Baby Collection for girls age three and up. By caring for a baby doll, a young girl can practice the caretaking skills introduced in Bitty Baby's stories and learn the value of loving relationships with family and friends.

We hope you and your American girl will enjoy our creations.

Pleasant T. Rowland, President

Pleasant Company Catalogue, Holiday 1997

For the past decade, we’ve been engaged in a conversation with American girls. They talk to us, and we listen. The American Girls Club—over 100,000 members strong—gets hundreds of cards, letters, and e-mails weekly. American Girl magazine boasts over 700,000 vocal subscribers. And our Web site gets more than 2 million hits every month!

It's clear that we've built a bond of trust with American girls, and we begin our second decade with a renewed commitment to them.

We remain committed to giving girls an understanding of their past, so we are pleased to introduce Josefina Montoya, the newest addition to The American Girls Collection. Josefina, like all the American Girls before her, is an engaging role model, a heroine girls will admire and love.

In addition to celebrating girls' lives in the past, we are committed to giving girls a sense of pride, possibility, and power in this, their moment in history: So we've added more advice and activity books to American Girl Library and a bright new batch of American Girl Gear that encourages girls to look as bright and bold as they feel.

We are also committed to preparing girls for the challenges of tomorrow. So we've developed interactive products and experiences that give girls ready access to new technology. Our award-winning Web site, www.americangirl.com, provides girls with safe ways to explore the Internet and to communicate and build community with each other. Our new CD-ROM, The American Girls Premiere, empowers girls to write and produce their own live-action plays based on the historical stories in The American Girls Collection—bringing our product offerings full circle from past to present to future.

At Pleasant Company, we are committed to celebrating American girls—of yesterday, today, and tomorrow—in all that we do. We cannot imagine a more worthy mission.

Pleasant T. Rowland

Pleasant Company Catalogue, Spring 1998

An Important Message to Parents

I began Pleasant Company over a decade ago to provide girls with beautiful books, dolls, and pastimes that celebrate the experience of growing up as an American girl. As an educator, I wanted to give girls an understanding of America's past and a sense of pride in the traditions they share with girls of yesterday. Out of this desire, The American Girls Collection was born.

I fervently hoped that the Collection would prolong and protect those fleeting years of childhood when girls are old enough to read and still love to play. I knew that there were plenty of products available for younger girls and for teens, but there was little of substance for girls ages 7 to 11, the forgotten ones in between. This is exactly the audience that The American Girls Collection was created for.

Parents often ask me at what age they should introduce their daughter to the American Girls. The answer is simple: when she is old enough to read the books independently. For most girls, that's approximately 2nd grade.

While a younger girl will love to have the stories read aloud to her and to play with the dolls, I strongly urge you to wait. Save The American Girls Girls Collection for that day when she is truly ready and able to understand its historical lessons and to embrace the important values that the books teach and that doll play reinforces.

At Pleasant Company, we are committed—as you are—to providing your American girl with rich, age-appropriate play experiences. By choosing the right books and toys for her at the right age and stage of her growth, you protect her development, nourish her spirit, and give her imagination wing.

Pleasant T. Rowland, founder and president of Pleasant Company

American Girl Catalogue, Holiday 1998

A Day to Remember

I hold dear a memory of a special day almost fifty years ago when my mother took me downtown to hear the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. It was just the two of us—a "grown-up" experience without my two younger sisters, which, of course, made it particularly meaningful!

First we went for lunch to a restaurant that served delicious, warm cinnamon buns, and then we walked to Orchestra Hall. In my mind's eye, I can still see its pale blue ceiling frosted in gold, gleaming like the instruments of the tuxedoed musicians. I can still remember the music they played that afternoon—especially, singing my heart out when the audience was invited to sing along with "Beautiful Dreamer." When the concert was over we went out into the wintry evening and walked down Michigan Avenue, white-gloved hand in white-gloved hand, squeezing our secret code: three squeezes from Mom meant "I love you", four squeezes from me meant "I love you, too.

White gloves have gone the way of all-male orchestras, and I can't imagine where one would hear "Beautiful Dreamer" today. But at American Girl Place you can create your own special memory with your American girl.

The inspiration for American Girl Place came from that special day my mother and I had almost half a century ago. You'll find it all there, right down to the cinnamon buns in the Cafe and a chance to sing your heart out at the Revue. Please save this delightful experience until your daughter is truly old enough to value it. And when you come, by all means, don't forget the secret code!

Pleasant T. Rowland, Founder and CEO of Pleasant Company and creator of American Girl

American Girl Catalogue, Holiday 1998

A Message to Parents

When people ask me if I am a doll collector, my answer has always been no. But during a recent stint of housecleaning, I realized I had collected more dolls than I thought.

In a basket beside my dressing table, I came upon the doll given to me by my grandmother the day I was born. Sadly, the doll had been put away during my entire childhood because she was thought too fragile to play with. Today, her dear face and faded silk bonnet remind me of the grandmother I adored.

In a closet, I came upon a box of family movies capturing the Christmas mornings of my childhood. But I didn't need to look at them because tucked in my heart is a vivid memory of the time my sisters and I got baby dolls from Santa. The clothes had been trimmed with blue ribbons and embroidered bow knots patiently sewn by my mother, grandmother, and aunt after my sisters and I had gone to bed.

In my dresser drawer, I found a tattered rag doll with a beguiling face. I bought it years ago in an antique store, simply because I delighted in some little girl's cherished treasure, crafted lovingly out of scraps from her mama's mending basket.

In my jewelry box, I came upon a miniature doll that fits in the palm of my hand, a gilt from my sister Barbara as a token of luck when I set out to build Pleasant Company. Never did we imagine how much luck that tiny talisman would bring!

Then I tackled the little-used sleeping loft, where I found the first American Girls—Kirsten, Samantha, and Molly—with all their accessories. The loft had been named "the plateau" by my goddaughter, Teal, who played there years ago with her friends.

Of course, when my housecleaning was over, the dolls remained next to my dressing table, in the jewelry box, and on "the plateau? I want them there as tender reminders of people, places, and moments that I love. Am la doll collector? No, not really. But I would never part with the memories these dolls stir in me.

If the dolls we make at Pleasant Company and the books and treasures we create have given you and your American girl even one moment as memorable as my own, then our labors have been repaid a hundred fold, Memories made in childhood warm us for all our days and leave an indelible mark on our spirit. When it comes to memories, we are all collectors.

Pleasant T. Rowland, Founder and CEO of Pleasant Company and creator of American Girl

American Girl Catalogue, Spring 1999

Message to Parents

Years ago—long before the days of Pleasant Company— I had the opportunity to visit Colonial Williamsburg. I was a teacher at the time, and I was enthralled by what I found in this historical town. It was as if I had stepped back in time! This was simply the best history classroom I could imagine.

As an educator, I wished every child could visit Colonial Williamsburg to discover that history is more than names and dates. It is the simple details of everyday life—the clothing our ancestors wore, the furniture they sat on, the dishes in their kitchens, the decorations in their parlors—that breathe life into history and inspire the imagination.

That is precisely what I hoped The American Girls Collection would do when I created it. All of the books, dolls, clothing, and accessories in the Collection are designed to give girls a tangible, personal way to learn about history. To complement that experience, we've created The American Girls Living History Programs in partnership with some of the finest living history museums in the country.

Your American girl can explore the worlds of the American Girls at our six museum programs located throughout the country. She can take tea as Felicity would have done, explore a tiny pioneer cabin like the one Kirsten's family would have lived in, ride in a Model T automobile like Samantha, and trace Addy's escape on the Underground Railroad. All are wonderful opportunities to deepen her understanding of our country's past.

The American Girls Living History Programs are a delightful experience for young girls and a rich resource for the whole family. So the next time you're planning a weekend away or a longer vacation, make a date with the American Girls, and give your family a memory to treasure.

Pleasant T. Rowland, President of Pleasant Company and creator of American Girl.

American Girl Catalogue, Spring 1999

A Message to Parents

This catalogue is full of big birthday wishes from American Girl! On these pages you'll discover all the presents, pastimes, and party treats that have always made American girls' birthdays special.

Give your American girl a birthday party that she'll remember forever. The American Girls Party Book will help you plan a unique and delightful experience. It's bursting with fun-filled party ideas that bring the worlds of the American Girls to life. There are three historically inspired parties for each of the American Girls, with easy-to-follow, illustrated instructions for invitations, decorations, snacks, games, favors, and more.

We offer complete birthday party kits as well, with everything you and your American girl need to host a very special event. For details, see the mini-book in the center of this catalogue.

Happy Birthday, American Girls!

Pleasant T. Rowland, President of Pleasant Company and creator of American Girl

Return to Childhood Nostalgia: A Collection of Pleasant Company and American Girl Catalogues >

Blake Changnon

A Message to Parents from Pleasant T. Rowland

List of Completed Catalogue Scans

History of Pleasant Company and American Girl Catalogues