Page 22 - eMuse Vol.9 No.10_Neat

Golliwog —

A Harmless Toy

or A Racist Symbol?

When I was a member of the preschool set almost everyone However this is a theory which is rejected by some. They claim
had a golliwog or a teddy bear to play with or provide a bit of moral there are no actual references from that era.
comfort or sweet dreams at bed time. Back then parents and kids Because of the way many traditional golliwogs are dressed, I
alike loved golliwogs. But this was a naïve age of innocence before was aware of the American minstrel connection. Yet, I still believed
the bitter, twisted minds of the politically correct arrived to point the origin of the golliwog came from the chimney-sweeps of old
out things like the previously unknown hidden evils associated England. They were covered in soot from their work which made
with racist toy symbols like golliwogs. them as black as the ace of spades, regardless of the actual colour
Yet in spite of the racist claims, there are still many people who of their skin. And, because most chimney-sweeps were English,
genuinely love their golliwogs and don’t want to part with them their skin was naturally white at the start.
under any circumstances. So who is right? The politically correct That was a good theory but I can’t find a reference to establish
or those who see golliwogs as an innocent toy? Lets take a look its accuracy. Reluctantly I must let it go. A consensus of opinion fa-
at their history to see if there’s an answer tucked away in there vours the belief golliwogs originated from the imagination of Flor-
somewhere. ence Kate Upton.
According to the “All Things Golliwogs” website: “The Ori- Florence was born in 1873 in Flushing, New York, United States,
gins and History of Golliwogs began during the British occupa- the daughter of English parents who had emigrated to the United
tion of Egypt in the late 1800’s, Egyptian workers wore the letters States. Following the death of her father, she moved back to Eng-
‘W.O.G.S.’ signifying that they were ‘Working On Government Ser- land with her mother and sisters when she was fourteen.
vice.’ These labourers were nicknamed ‘Ghuls’ (the Arabic word for She spent several years drawing and developing her artistic
‘Desert Ghost’) by the British Troops. skills. Upton began to sketch out ideas for a children’s book, using
“Children in Egypt played with black stuffed material dolls, nick- “penny wooden” dolls as her models. However, without a central
named “Ghuliwogs”, which were often purchased by the soldiers character on which to hang the tale, progress came to a standstill.
returning to England. This name would eventually become the Her aunt, Kate Hudson, found an old toy in her attic that had
“Golliwogs” we know today.” belonged to the Upton children, left behind from an earlier visit.
This toy, which she named Golliwogg, provided inspiration, and the
first story was completed in 1894.
The publishing house of Longmans, Green & Co. offered her a
contract and “The Adventures of Two Dutch Dolls and a Golliwogg”
was published for Christmas 1895.
The 1895 book included a character named the Golliwogg, who
was first described as “a horrid sight, the blackest gnome“, but he
quickly turned out to be a friendly character, and is later attributed
with a “kind face.” A product of the blackface minstrel tradition,
the Golliwogg had jet black skin; bright red lips; and wild woolly
hair. He wore red trousers, a shirt with a stiff collar, red bow-tie,
and a blue jacket with tails – all traditional minstrel attire.
Upton’s book and its many sequels were extremely successful in
England, largely because of the popularity of the Golliwogg. Upton
did not trademark her character, and its name, soon spelt “golli-
wog”, became the generic name for dolls and images of a similar
type.
The golliwog doll became a popular children’s toy throughout
most of the 20th century, and was incorporated into many aspects
of British commerce and culture in Europe and Australia.
Florence Kate Upton’s Golliwogg in formal minstrel attire in The golliwog image started appearing on everything from post-
The Adventures of Two Dutch Dolls and a Golliwogg in 1895 cards, wallpaper, food jars and dolls and biscuits. It rapidly be-
22 eMuse October 2020