Dolls
19th century girls were pressured to embody adult roles in miniature [2]. Adults expected girls to take interest in domestic caretaking, and, most importantly, learn the essential skills of mothering [2]. As a consequence, dolls were the primary toy girls played with in this time period. Girls would learn to nurture these dolls by dressing them and caring for them, an activity adults believed would enrich their mothering skills when they reached womanhood. The slight transition between caring for dolls and caring for children demonstrates the lack of distinction between girlhood and womanhood in 19th century America [1]. In essence, a girl in this time period was a woman in waiting [2].