German Cloth Doll Steiff Student
Margarete Steiff-the person
Steiff dolls have their beginning in the desire of a woman with a disability from polio to be as independent as possible.
Margarete Steiff (July 24, 1847 - May 9, 1909), of Giengen, Wurttemburg, Germany had polio as a child which left her
permanently in a wheelchair----but never bound by it.
I can not chronicle this remarkable woman better than that by www.steiffnews.com
Margarete Steiff died of pneumonia in Giengen in 1909.
Steiff Dolls--a smaller part of the company that built the Teddy Bear.
Steiff was a company that made things. What it made changed over the years. From felt petticoats and children's coats rose
the company that is now known for its stuffed toys. Margarete Steiff took what she could do and made the most of her
opportunities.
Beginning in 1877 she opened a small shop turning felt scraps into clothing. In 1880, when the seamstress in her made
petticoats and children's coats, it was natural to make a pincushion. Pincushions were common affairs of daily use to which
Margarete added her unique perspective. Her nephews added their perspective that this pincushion made a fine toy for their
imaginations. Seeing the opportunity Margarete made more of the little toys to sell when she was not busy with her primary
business.
But by 1893 her primary business WAS toymaking. She was noted for her animals and caricature people similar to the worsted
dolls popular in America. Her characters included policemen, musicians, circus performers, sports figures, teachers, soldiers
and even Teddy Roosevelt. Designs for these caricatures were primarily from Albert Schlopsnies, a Munich artist. Elves and
gnomes were included in 1905.
It was not until 1913, four years after her death, that the company introduced a child like play doll. German patents for the feet
were obtained in 1910, ears in 1911 and a jointed boy in 1912. While the dolls appeared after her death, it is clear from the time
line of the patents, that the design and quality requirements were planned well before her death. The dolls were high quality
rosy checked children that usually carried accessories of their own.
Like the caricatures, the dolls had a seam in the center of their faces. This pattern continued until 1930. The dolls were felt
with felt clothes in contemporary styles. Eyes were inset glass stationary beads. Hair was mohair or plush. Necks and hips
were disc jointed and shoulders were sewn.
The center seam doll was replaced in 1930 with the pressed felt head. They were available in 14 and 17 inch sizes. Neither
the characters with the center seams nor the dolls with the center seams were made after 1930.
In 1952, Steiff used rubber and vinyl for the doll heads.
Steiff also carried bisque headed dolls as well as celluloid headed dolls. Most likely, these parts were purchased and then
assembled by Steiff.
Doll Type Description Picture
http://www.steiff.de/en/company.html
http://www.steiffnews.com
Steiff dolls have their beginning in the desire of a woman with a disability from polio to be as independent as possible.
Margarete Steiff (July 24, 1847 - May 9, 1909), of Giengen, Wurttemburg, Germany had polio as a child which left her
permanently in a wheelchair----but never bound by it.
I can not chronicle this remarkable woman better than that by www.steiffnews.com
- Short Biography of Margarete Steiff
Illness and zest for living: 1847 - 1856
Appolonia Margarete Steiff was born in Giengen 24th July 1847, the third of four children. She had two older sisters and a
brother, who was born after her.
Her father, Friedrich Steiff, was a master builder in Giengen and her mother, Maria Margarete Steiff, née Hähnle, ran the
household and supported her father in his work.
Although Giengen - which is situated between Ulm and Heidenheim on the eastern side of the Swabian Alps - had a town
charter, it still possessed more village character.
Margarete was a very lively, well-built child and led a carefree life until she became ill with polio at the early age of 1½. She
was destined never to walk and to be confined to a wheelchair for the rest of her life.
Her mother, above all, found this very difficult to bear. She would have to care for her daughter for as long as she lived.
Her daughter would never be able to take on the role of housewife and mother and, at the time, it seemed as though she
had absolutely no prospects for the future.
The apparently helpless Margarete had other ideas, however, and was full of the joys of life. She radiated a positive aura
and her convivial, cheerful nature made her very popular.
Margarete Steiff's birthplace in Ledergasse before it was converted
She always wanted to be involved in whatever was going on out of doors, regardless of the weather, and was always
asking the members of her household and friends to carry her outside - even during the winter months.
In spite of this, she still spent long intervals during the winter with her grandparents and various neighbors.
When Margarete was due to start school, the problem of organization reared its head initially, as it did on so many
occasions. But everything worked out fine: she was accompanied by the neighbors' children and her sisters, and a lady
who lived near to the school carried her up the steps.
She enjoyed school very much and her work soon proved to be above-average.
The schoolhouse in the church square. The building has been preserved virtually as it was. This is where Margarete Steiff
went to elementary school.
She spent her free time playing with the other children whenever possible. Margarete was a creative inventor of new
games. She was always having new ideas and organized the games in such a way that she could take part.
In doing this, one of her natural gifts became evident, one that was to help her a great deal in the years to come: Margarete
had a way of telling people what had to be done in a manner that made them want to do what she said.
Margarete looked after young children while their mothers were working. She loved closeness and little ones and also
noted the following aspect of this in her daily reminiscences:
"It was also an important duty for me as I did not have to crochet at the same time, because I was usually required to do
such and such amount."
This statement certainly gives the impression that Margarete's mother didn't spoil her.
Overcoming limitations: 1856 - 1877
Margarete was strictly kept at home, which is the reason why she particularly enjoyed the summer of 1856. She was
staying in Ludwigsburg with the family of Dr. Werner, a pediatrician, and had a great deal more freedom of movement
there. She was completely integrated into the family, had lessons and didn't suffer from homesickness at all.
Following an unsuccessful operation on her legs, Margarete went to a health resort in Wildbad. She enjoyed the health
cure tremendously and matured in mind and soul, but her physical condition did not improve. She traveled backwards and
forwards between Ludwigsburg and Wildbad, finally returning to Giengen in the November of 1856.
Margarete had a lot to catch up on at school after her summer absence but, being a cheerful and ambitious person, she
soon brought herself up to the required level.
The next thing that Margarete wanted to do was to attend a sewing school. Her father objected to this initially, wishing to
prevent her from being disappointed if she was unsuccessful. She asserted herself, though, and showed her parents once
again that they had underestimated her.
Although she took much longer to get the work done and frequently had to ask her sisters to help her, she became a
perfect seamstress after a few years.
Margarete was always trying to overcome her limitations. She was also up to learning to play the zither. Eventually, she
could play so well that she was able to give lessons herself.
Margarete spent some of her time staying with other families while sewing dowry articles. Her aunt, Appolonia Hähnle, was
the first person for whom she did this and she later worked for town clergyman Gross. She enjoyed it there.
When she was around 17 years old, Margarete realized that she was never going to be healed. She knew that she was
going to have to come to terms with her illness in order to find peace of mind and her real way in life.
Margarete's father, Friedrich Steiff, modified his house in 1874 and, among other things, converted a study on the first floor
into a dressmaker's workshop.
Together with her sisters, Marie and Pauline, she began to perform sewing work at home. The workshop became well
known and the girls were the first people in Giengen to buy their own sewing machine.
Margarete was unable to turn the wheel with her right hand, so the machine was turned round: she used her left hand to
drive the machine and guided the fabric with her right hand.
The list of customers grew longer and longer. Although Margarete also made up-to-date dresses, she much preferred
sewing clothes for children. Pauline married in 1870, followed by Marie in 1873. Margarete started traveling around the
country in the summer of that year, always staying with friends or relatives. Her first journeys took her to Geislingen,
Heidenheim and Gerstetten; later to Neckarsulm, Stuttgart, Hochberg, Ludwigsburg and Augsburg at greater intervals and,
much later, to Hörbranz and Lindau.
She commented on her wanderlust with a German proverb:
"Der Mensch treibt just das am liebsten, wozu er am wenigsten Beruf hat"
[man most enjoys doing exactly what he is least suited for]
Margarete was still working in her parents' house. At the instigation of Adolf Glatz - a manufacturer at the local felt factory
who married into the family - she set up a felt business and took on her first assistants.
Wilhelm Adolf Glatz (1841-1916), a titled distinguished businessman, originally worked in the Völter paper factory in
Gerschweiler and married one of the sisters of felt manufacturer Hans Hähnle in 1871. Adolf Glatz helped Margarete Steiff
in both word and deed and encouraged her to set up her own business.
He supported Margarete, financially as well, of course, as much as he could for several years. Felt was transformed into
ladies petticoats (for Ch. Siegle in Stuttgart and the retail trade) and children's coats.
The sales figures increased continuously and the sewing workshop turned into a little factory.
Over the years, Margarete's brother, Fritz, became father to six sons, with whom Margarete shared very close
relationships. They often visited her at home and in the workshop.
Margarete radiated tremendous optimism and affection for people. She had a very special way of dealing with children,
watching them carefully and responding tactfully and with humour.
This tact and sensitivity also manifested themselves in the atmosphere that prevailed in the workshop. There was no
feeling of boss and employees - Margarete was interested in the fates of every one of her seamstresses and helped where
she could.
In 1880, she discovered the model of a felt elephant in a fashion magazine and decided to make eight of these little
elephants as pincushions for Christmas presents. The elephants were very pretty and were received with great enthusiasm.
The children used them as draught animals, hitching them up to their toy carriage, loaded them up as pack animals and
played with them in every way imaginable.
Soon after Christmas, people started asking for the felt elephants in the workshop. From this time onward, elephants were
made and kept in stock when the demand for dresses left sufficient time. Fritz came up with the idea of selling the
elephants at the market in Heidenheim and Margarete and her staff filled two sacks with the little animals.
The idea was a tremendous success - the felt elephants were soon sold out. Soft toy animals were completely new at that
time.
Margarete was asked to design other animals and created a kitten, lifelike dogs and a pink-colored pig.
The workshop became a "factory for felt articles and toys".
Fritz continued to be the one who keeps inspiring his occasionally hesitant sister to work towards new objectives. He
arranged for her articles to be put on exhibition in a display of export samples in Stuttgart in 1883. Every year saw an
increase in the sales figures and expansion of the collection.
Margarete invested 1,460 marks for felt in 1886, increasing to 3,700 marks in 1888 and as much as 5,070 marks in 1890.
Fritz took over his father's building firm in 1888. He was a well-respected man in Giengen and it wasn't long before he also
persuaded Margarete to move her business out of the cramped rooms in her parents' house.
He built a house with business premises in the Mühlstrasse - completely oriented to Margarete's requirements.
The living accommodation was upstairs, with a large bay window that allowed Margarete to see what was going on outside.
Felt and toys were sold in the corner shop on the ground floor with its two display windows.
The firm continued its positive development during the years that followed. The first illustrated catalogue was printed in
1892. By this time, the collection included monkeys, a donkey, a horse, a camel, a pig, a mouse, a dog, a cat, a rabbit and
a giraffe, as well as elephants.
The workshop was entered in the commercial register as "Margarete Steiff, Filzwarenfabrik Giengen/Brenz" [Margarete
Steiff, Felt goods factory Giengen/Brenz] on 3rd March 1893.
Four ladies were employed on the premises and ten worked at home in 1893. The turnover for felt goods amounted to
12,000 marks with 28,000 marks for toys.
Margarete worked on her success with an iron will, but a warm-hearted atmosphere always prevailed in spite of this.
1894 saw Margarete being invited to St. Gallen by a major toy dealer. Shortly afterwards, orders started coming in from
Berlin, Rothenburg and from abroad.
When her brother's six sons reached adulthood, Margarete asked them to join the company. Five of them were willing to do
so and initially learned professions that suited their respective inclinations - designer, engineers and management experts.
The foundation stone for a family concern was laid.
Upswing and Margarete's death: 1894 - 1909
The first representative began to present samples of Steiff products in 1894/95 - in addition to the goods produced by
another company. The animals were also among those sold in Berlin businesses. Richard Steiff, Fritz's second-oldest son,
joined the company in 1897.
He had always been close to Margarete, even as a child, and she also got along very well with Richard, the adult. He
combined down-to-earth business acumen with a generous portion of creativity, he attended art school in Stuttgart and
went on to college in England.
Accompanied by another member of staff, he initially represented the company during its first appearance at the Leipzig
trade fair.
The turnover at that time amounted to 90,000 marks.
His brothers, Franz, Otto, Hugo and Paul, then joined the company, one after the other, responsible for purchasing and
sales, advertising, improving the production process and the manufacturing technology.
Margarete still kept track of the operation as a whole.
Margarete left nothing to chance, reviewed work routines and motivated the staff by her presence and personal dedication.
Margarete was also very critical, however, which meant that a lot of items had to be retouched or reworked.
Margarete Steiff at her workplace - she made most of the prototypes herself.
She didn't regard the animals on their own, but always saw them in the arms of children and therefore imposed the most
stringent requirements on the quality of the products.
Her motto was always "The best is just good enough for our children".
Correspondingly, only materials of the very best quality were used. The animals were initially stuffed with sheep's wool,
which was replaced by wood shavings in the 1890s.
The catalogue of the time refers to the filling material as "light, soft and pure" (no sawdust, animal hair or cork waste).
The soft toys were launched onto the markets, in Europe to start with, soon followed by America.
Following the death of Fritz (1900), Margarete primarily drew the strength for her work from the close family relationship
between her and her nephews. Richard, in particular, introduced many new ideas and was very involved in expanding the
product range. Margarete made most of the first models herself..
The factory building built in 1903 had a ramp for easy access in a wheelchair.
Building work started on a new factory hall in 1903: a two-storey building made of concrete and glass with an access ramp
to the upper floor.
Margarete was driven to the factory every day. She checked the models, the inner frames, the colors - applied to the
finished fur with a spray gun. She went to see the people who made the voices, stuffed the animals and stitched the
embroidery.
In 1902, Richard Steiff developed a new type of soft toy: with jointed arms and legs, proper fur made of mohair plush and
glass eyes.
Margarete was rather skeptical as to whether the market would accept these relatively expensive animals that she felt were
rather ungainly.
There was an enormous risk attached to this decision, as the financial strength of the company would be jeopardized if the
idea turned out to be a flop.
In spite of her reservations, she allowed herself to be persuaded by Richard's arguments - without success initially. They
were being packed away again at the end of the Leipzig trade fair when an American bought all 3,000 of them at the very
last minute.
Bear PB became a smash hit at the World Exhibition in St. Louis. 12,000 bears were sold, Margarete and Richard each
received a gold medal and the Grand Prix - the highest prize possible - was awarded to the company.
The production volume increased to 1.7 million toy animals between 1903 and 1907. There were 400 people working on
the premises, another 1,800 women were employed as home workers. The jointed bear set off on his march of conquest in
America. And he owed his later name "Teddy bear" (since 1906) to none other than President Theodore "Teddy" Roosevelt.
Increasing competitive pressure soon necessitated the implementation of new measures. Nobody wanted to become
involved in a price war and the family started looking for a way of making the animals unmistakable.
Franz Steiff came up with the idea of riveting a button to one ear of each animal. The "Button in Ear" was born - the
trademark of a real Steiff animal right through to today.
Franz Steiff
The American economy came under pressure in 1908 - with serious consequences for the company: orders were
cancelled, large quantities of finished bears were turned away.
Margarete went through the upswing and the crisis full of activity. She was growing noticeably weary, though, and could
often be seen sitting at her window, watching the comings and goings in the company from there. She seemed to know that
her life was coming to an end.
Margarete Steiff was just 61 years old when she died on 9th April 1909. What had originally seemed to be a hopeless life
became a shining example of what can be achieved with courage, strength, heart and willpower.
Her family, the staff and the people of Giengen found it difficult to get over her death.
But the company continued to be run in her spirit - right through to today.
Margarete Steiff died of pneumonia in Giengen in 1909.
Steiff Dolls--a smaller part of the company that built the Teddy Bear.
Steiff was a company that made things. What it made changed over the years. From felt petticoats and children's coats rose
the company that is now known for its stuffed toys. Margarete Steiff took what she could do and made the most of her
opportunities.
Beginning in 1877 she opened a small shop turning felt scraps into clothing. In 1880, when the seamstress in her made
petticoats and children's coats, it was natural to make a pincushion. Pincushions were common affairs of daily use to which
Margarete added her unique perspective. Her nephews added their perspective that this pincushion made a fine toy for their
imaginations. Seeing the opportunity Margarete made more of the little toys to sell when she was not busy with her primary
business.
But by 1893 her primary business WAS toymaking. She was noted for her animals and caricature people similar to the worsted
dolls popular in America. Her characters included policemen, musicians, circus performers, sports figures, teachers, soldiers
and even Teddy Roosevelt. Designs for these caricatures were primarily from Albert Schlopsnies, a Munich artist. Elves and
gnomes were included in 1905.
It was not until 1913, four years after her death, that the company introduced a child like play doll. German patents for the feet
were obtained in 1910, ears in 1911 and a jointed boy in 1912. While the dolls appeared after her death, it is clear from the time
line of the patents, that the design and quality requirements were planned well before her death. The dolls were high quality
rosy checked children that usually carried accessories of their own.
Like the caricatures, the dolls had a seam in the center of their faces. This pattern continued until 1930. The dolls were felt
with felt clothes in contemporary styles. Eyes were inset glass stationary beads. Hair was mohair or plush. Necks and hips
were disc jointed and shoulders were sewn.
The center seam doll was replaced in 1930 with the pressed felt head. They were available in 14 and 17 inch sizes. Neither
the characters with the center seams nor the dolls with the center seams were made after 1930.
In 1952, Steiff used rubber and vinyl for the doll heads.
Steiff also carried bisque headed dolls as well as celluloid headed dolls. Most likely, these parts were purchased and then
assembled by Steiff.
Doll Type Description Picture
http://www.steiff.de/en/company.html
http://www.steiffnews.com
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