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	Portia Sperry Name Portia Sperry Birth/Death Dates 1890-1967 Where in Indiana Allen County--Fort Wayne ; Brown County--Nashville When in Indiana ca. 1920-1967 Notable For Portia Howe Sperry was born in Illinois. She married Ralph Waldo Emerson Sperry and they lived in Fort Wayne, Indiana. Sperry's husband Ralph was a nationally known piano designer. When the Great Depression hit they moved to Nashville where she managed the Brown County Folks Shop. She created the Abigail rag doll and hired local women to help make them. Sperry wrote a children's book "Abigail" telling the story of a pioneer family that moved to Brown County. The little girl in the story has a doll named Abigail. Sperry also created another rag doll named Nancy Hanks. Description Sperry is shown holding a Nancy Hanks rag doll which she designed. The doll is wearing pioneer clothing. Subject Sperry, Portia Howe Dolls Authors Toys Rag dolls Item ID Sperry and Doll SP1-2.1 Source of Image Sperry Family. IHS may not reproduce. Digital Collection Notable Hoosiers (DC 010) Bibliography/Notes Information taken from: Traces of Indiana and Midwestern History, Fall, 2001. Copyright Notice Digital image © 2005 Indiana Historical Society. All Rights Reserved.
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