Felicity the American Girl Doll

Felicity Merriman  lived in Virginia, one of the 13 original colonies of England in 1774. At the time there were 13 colonies.  They were Connecticut, Delaware, Georgia, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, South Carolina, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island and Virginia.  A colony meant the people left England so they could have a better life, but they still had ties to England.  In 1776, on July 4th, the colonies declared their Independence from England.

When Felicity was a little girl most families lived on farms. There were a few who lived in a town. Her family lived in the town of Williamsburg. People came from the farms to buy and sell their products.  Felicity’s dad owned a store in Williamsburg.

In those days, people liked to have things very well kept. Their homes, gardens, clothing were to be kept in good order. It was an unspoken rule that everyone expected.

You can purchase Felicity’s, the American girl dolls, Beautiful one-of-a-kind Colonial dress here

Young boys up to the age of four or five wore loose dresses and then began to dress like their fathers at about age 5 or 6. The men wore knee length pants that were called breeches.  They wore long stockings to the knees. Men wore wigs that were kept very nicely braided and decorated with ribbons.

Women and girls wore long dresses. They were the fanciest material a person could afford with lace and ribbons. Under those dresses they wore something called “stays” that were a tight fitting garment so to give a good looking figure. The women stayed at home doing all the chores necessary to keep the family safe and loved.

Some people had a good life in Virginia, others had a tough life. Half of the people at the time were African-American slaves who worked long and hard for the people who owned them. The slaves had nothing much but food, basic clothing and a place to live.
In today’s terms, we might say Felicity was a tomboy. She preferred to wear her brother breeches than her dresses. She loved horses and would rather tame a wild horse than do the expected work of refining her handwriting or sewing. Early some mornings she would put on her brothers breeches and go to the pasture.
Felicity was a bit of a day dreamer. She would go to her Dad’s store and dream of all the places where the items came from.  Fancy material and spices from very far away Asia.  She also was strong willed and persisted in carrying out her wants and dreams. One of those dreams was to tame a wild horse.  Her brother said he did not know if Felicity was brave or foolish.

Read Felicity’s story and her efforts to work for something she loved. You can decide was Felicity brave or foolish!