Take a sneak peak inside the Spencer Doll And Toy Museum.

View the attached video and take a sneak peak inside the Spencer Doll And Toy Museum. You'll be amazed at the variety of antique and vintage dolls, toys, trains and trucks!

Make time for a visit. We'll reopen on January 15, 2014 with new exhibits. Happy New Year!

Tyler Wentworth versus Gene!

Which is your favorite, Tyler Wentworth by the Tonner Doll Company:

or, Gene by Mel Odom?

Here is another Tonner doll, Ava Gardner:

And finally, one more doll by Mel Odom. This is Violet Waters:

Whether you prefer Tonner dolls or Gene dolls, we have a beautiful exhibit that includes both. Hurry in and see them before the summer is over, because Gene and her friends won't be with us forever!

Moving in! New Dolls!

We have moved in our dolls, trucks, and trains and are ready to set up exhibits! One of our special summer exhibits will be June Brides. If you have vintage to antique bride dolls or bridal memorabilia such as magazines and photographs, please contact us by leaving a comment. Items may be loaned for the duration of the exhibit or donated.

We have also acquired two beautiful new Tonners for our collection. The brunette is Ava Gardner, and the blonde is Rosemary Clooney.

Signature Statement Tyler Wentworth

We received our Signature Statement Tyler Wentworth from the Tonner Doll Company. This generous donation will be proudly displayed in our Modern and Collectible Dolls exhibit. As this is our first donated doll, we are very excited to show her off!

Tonner Dolls

Robert Tonner worked for Bill Blass for 18 years before starting the Tonner Doll Company in 1991, with an eye towards making a fashion doll that would rival Barbie. His first fashion dolls were jointed porcelain dolls. The Tonner Doll Company also made porcelain child dolls and then vinyl child dolls while Robert Tonner worked on his idea for a fashion doll. His first fashion dolls were the vinyl American Models, followed by Zoe, and then Julia. Tonner felt that there were problems with the lengths of various limbs in the American Model Dolls, Zoe, and Julia. He finally achieved his vision of his ideal fashion doll with Tyler Wentworth, whose backstory is that of a fashion designer.

Tyler Wentworth

In addition to fashion dolls, the Tonner Doll Company makes vinyl recreations of Betsy McCall, the famous paper doll from the 1950s. The Tonner Doll Company has also designed dolls based on characters from movies such as Titanic, the Harry Potter movies, and Pirates of the Caribbean, as well as dolls based on characters from DC Comics. Tonner has also created doll versions of Bette Davis, Ava Gardner, and Joan Crawford.

We are very excited to be able to feature a Tonner doll in the Spencer Doll and Toy Museum and will post pictures here and on Facebook when we receive it.

~Robin