American Girl is an American line of dolls owned by Mattel. The dolls portray 8- to 14-year-old girls of various ethnicities, faiths, nationalities, and social classes during different historical periods. They are sold with accompanying books told from the girls' viewpoints. Originally the stories, dolls and accessories focused on various periods of American history, but were expanded to include characters and stories from contemporary life. Offerings expanded over time and currently include baby dolls (Bitty Baby), Truly Me dolls, which vary by eye color, face mold, skin color, hair texture, and hair length, and Girl of the Year dolls which are contemporary characters traditionally available for only one year. A service for ordering a custom-made doll with features and clothing specified by the owner dubbed Create Your Own, was introduced in 2017.
American Girl dolls were introduced in 1986 by the Pleasant Company. The company was founded by Pleasant Rowland in Madison, Wisconsin, and later headquartered in Middleton, Wisconsin. Its products were originally purchasable only by mail or phone through the company's catalog. In 1998, Mattel purchased the company for $700 million. The company has been awarded the Oppenheim Toy Portfolio Award eight times and was inducted into the National Toy Hall of Fame in 2021.
Dolls and accessories
The Historical Characters line of books and 18-inch dolls, which were modeled after 18-inch dolls made by Götz in West Germany (known as Germany from October 1990) during the late 1980s to the 1990s, were initially the main focus of Pleasant Company, founded by Pleasant Rowland in 1986. The original Historical Characters included Kirsten Larson, Samantha Parkington, and Molly McIntire. Each doll represented a fictional 9-year old girl living during a unique era in American history. Kirsten is a Swedish immigrant in 1854; Samantha, a well-to-do Edwardian-era orphan living in 1904; and Molly, a World War II-era girl in 1944. These original dolls formed the foundation of the American Girl historical collection, which aimed to educate and inspire through storytelling and play.American Girl. (n.d.). Our Story. Retrieved July 4, 2025, from https://www.americangirl.com/pages/about This product line taught important aspects of American history through a six-book series from the perspective of a girl living in that time period.
Rowland came up with the idea after she returned from a trip to Colonial Williamsburg, where she noticed there was a significant void in the toy market for quality dolls which resembled children, and she saw an opportunity to provide a more educational alternative to baby dolls or adult dolls, like Barbie, which often attracted controversy for perceived sexualization and imposing unrealistic expectations for young girls. The original books were written at a third-grade reading level and intended for girls who are at least eight years old, however, they did not avoid significant topics such as child labor, child abuse, poverty, racism, slavery, animal abuse and war, but endeavored to share those challenges in a manner appropriate to the understanding and sensibilities of their young audiences. In 1991, Felicity Merriman, a spirited girl growing up during the American Revolution, was introduced as the fourth historical character.
Addy Walker was introduced in September 1993 as the fifth American Girl historical character and the first Black doll in the collection, debuting at the National Council of Negro Women's Black Family Reunion Celebration in Washington, D.C. Her storyline is set during the American Civil War, focusing on her escape from slavery in North Carolina with her mother to freedom in Philadelphia in 1864. Addy's six-book Central Series, written by Connie Rose Porter and vetted by Black historians, earned acclaim for its educational and culturally authentic portrayal, selling over a million copies within a year of publication. The character marked a groundbreaking expansion in the brand’s diversity, serving as the only Black historical doll for nearly two decades and becoming a powerful tool for introducing themes of resilience, slavery, and African American history to young readers.
In 1995, Pleasant Company released a line of contemporary dolls called American Girl of Today. In 2006, the product line was renamed Just Like You; it was changed again in 2010 to My American Girl, and in 2015 to Truly Me. This line has included over one hundred different dolls over the years. Each doll has a different combination of face mold, skin tone, eye color, hair color, length, texture, and/or style. American Girl states that this variety allows customers to choose dolls that "represent the individuality and diversity of today's American girls." A wide variety of contemporary clothing, accessories, and furniture is also available, and there are regular releases and retirements to update this line.
Girls of Many Lands was released by American Girl in the holiday season of 2002. Each doll was 9 inches tall and represented a 12-year-old girl from a time in history; in addition, each doll came with an accompanying book. Along with specific ethnicities, the dolls were given a home country and time periods, such as 1592 England, 1711 France, 1846 Ethiopia, and more. Sculpted by Helen Kish, the dolls were meant for display only and were priced from $48 to $54. The doll line lasted until the Fall of 2005.
In 2001, American Girl launched a contemporary character doll named Lindsey Bergman, with her own story and accompanying clothing and accessories. A second contemporary character, Kailey Hopkins, was introduced a little over a year later, Her success led the company to develop contemporary characters each year, as part of a new Girl of the Year product line, and to launch those dolls each year on Jan.1. Every year since, a Girl of the Year doll who has her own unique story, challenge or talent has followed. For example, Mia St. Clair, the Girl of the Year for 2008, was an ice skater, and Marisol Luna, the Girl of the Year for 2005, was a dancer.
Bitty Baby is a line of 15-inch baby dolls targeted to children aged three and older. They are cheaper than the 18-inch dolls and as of 2024, retail at $60 each. In 2013, American Girl Publishing released Bitty Baby books, picture books aimed at girls ages 3–6.
The Bitty Twins line debuted in 2003 to represent slightly older toddlers and/or preschoolers. The Bitty Twins were the same size as the Bitty Baby dolls. They were discontinued in June 2016.
Hopscotch Hill School was released by American Girl in 2003. The dolls were tall, came with jointed limbs and painted eyes, and had a slimmer overall body shape. They, along with the stories which came with the dolls written by Valerie Tripp, were aimed at elementary-age girls from four to six years old and were sold until 2006.
A reboot of the Historical Characters line dubbed as BeForever was launched in August 2014, complete with redesigned outfits, a two-volume compilation of previously released books, and a "Journey Book" for each character, with players taking the role of a present-day girl who found her way to the past and met up with one of the Historical girls. The line also coincided with the relaunch of Samantha Parkington, whose collection was discontinued in 2008. The BeForever rebranding was removed in 2019, and the dolls were again referred to as "Historical Characters."
In June 2016, American Girl unveiled Wellie Wishers, a separate doll line similar to Hopscotch Hill School aimed at younger children and with a focus on nature and the outdoors, positioning it between Bitty Baby and the BeForever/Girl of the Year/Truly Me dolls. As the name implies, dolls from the line wear Wellington (wellie) boots and have a body design distinct from the classic, Götz-derived American Girl dolls. The line was released on June 23, 2016. The names of the Wellie Wishers are: Willa, Camille, Kendall, Emerson, Ashlyn, and Bryant.
In February 2017, American Girl released a new line of 18-inch dolls called contemporary characters. The first doll in the line was Tenney Grant, a young aspiring country singer, and songwriter. Other dolls of the modern line include Logan, Tenney's bandmate and American Girl's first-ever boy doll, and Z Yang, who is interested in photography and making stop motion videos.
In May 2021, American Girl rereleased the six original historical dolls for their 35th anniversary. The release included Felicity, Kirsten, Samantha, Addy, Josefina, and Molly.
In September 2021, American Girl released a new line of 18-inch dolls called World by Us. The dolls and their books promote messages of various social justice issues that are age-appropriate for the line's target audience and cover relevant subjects such as racism, immigration, and climate change. The line debuted with three dolls: Makena Williams, Maritza Ochoa, and Evette Peeters. The line also features doll outfits designed by Harlem's Fashion Row fashion designers.
In 2025, The Washington Post reported that American Girl continued to attract interest decades after its founding, driven in part by nostalgia among adult fans and ongoing engagement with the brand's historical characters.
In 2026, American Girl rereleased eight historical characters for their 40th anniversary: Kaya, Felicity, Josefina, Kirsten, Addy, Samantha, Kit, and Molly. Additionally, a new line of 14.5-inch dolls was released as the Modern Era Collection, where six historical characters (Felicity, Josefina, Kirsten, Addy, Samantha, Molly) were redesigned in contemporary designs and outfits.
Characters
Girl of the Year Girl of the Year is a line created by American Girl where it features one doll year round. The doll has its accessories and merchandise and her own story. The first Girl of the Year was in the year 2001, which was Lindsey Bergman, who was launched at a "contemporary character" and later repopsitioned as the initial character in the Girl of Year series. The current Girl of the Year as of 2027 is Daisy Davenport. Listed below are the dolls who have been Girl of the Year from 2001 to 2027. +NameYearLindsey Bergman2001Kailey Hopkins2003Marisol Luna2005Jess McConnell2006Nicki Fleming2007Mia St. Clair2008Chrissa Maxwell2009Lanie Holland2010Kanani Akina2011McKenna Brooks2012Saige Copeland2013Isabelle Palmer2014Grace Thomas2015Lea Clark2016Gabriela McBride2017Luciana Vega2018Blaire Wilson2019Joss Kendrick2020Kira Bailey2021Corinne Tan2022Kavi Sharma2023Lila Monetti2024Summer McKinny2025Raquel Reyes2026Daisy Davenport2027
Collector doll series In 2019, American Girl launched the Collector Doll Series. The first doll was the Holiday Collector doll in partnership with Swarovski of which three were produced. In 2020, American Girl again partnered with Swarovski and released three collector dolls; the Sweet as Rose, Boho Chic, and Fuchsia Feathers collector dolls. Only one of each doll was produced, each of which had a gown that included 1,000 or more Swarovski crystals.
In August 2023, American Girl released three Disney Princess dolls: Jasmine, Belle, and Rapunzel. In September, they released a series of Nutcracker-related collector dolls, including a toy soldier doll in partnership with FAO Schwarz, and in December, they released The Classic Barbie by American Girl collector doll. In February 2024, American Girl released three more Disney Princess dolls: Cinderella, Tiana, and Ariel. In 2026, American Girl renewed their partnership with Disney, including plans to expand the princess line with an 18-inch Jasmine doll and Frozen dolls.
Books
The American Girl fiction books have many different variations; each book series shares the some portion of the journey of one American Girl Doll character. American Girl Dolls were created with the goal of educating young children on history, morals, and life lessons through the stories that accompanied each doll.