Personal Narrative: The Philadelphia Doll Museum

My neighborhood is in North Philadelphia; and in my community one of the most interesting places is the Philadelphia Doll Museum. It’s is one of the sights I used to go to frequently as a child. I still remember all of the different dolls all, unique in a different way. From their eyes to the way each of them was dressed. Located at 2253 North Broad St it is one of the best sights in North Philadelphia. The museum was started by a woman named Barbara Whiteman. She was a doll collector; it started off as a hobby, but soon it grew into something more than a hobby. Adults and children from all over started to frequently come to her home to admire her dolls. So in 1996 she started the Philadelphia Doll Museum to share her collection with even more people. Today she’s still the executive

They weren’t supposed to be a child’s toys they were supposed to be used for rituals. Some cultures used them for trapping spirits which is why they’re given such blank expressions. One of the dolls that freaked me out the most was a doll towards the corner of the museum. It was a dark faced doll sitting in a rocking chair on top of a shelf. When I first walked into the museum it was facing the door way with a smile and big blue eyes. When I went to go to the next room near the shelf where the doll was instead of facing the door the doll’s head was turned in the direction I was standing; I stood there frozen in fear. The culture and history of them was interesting, but having so many spirit trapping devices in one place doesn’t give out good vibes. Overall the Museum was cool and one of the weirdest yet interesting places in North Philadelphia. It’s kept kids of the street mostly because they like going in to see how ugly all the dolls were and who they could compare them to. The Doll Museum was one of the places that kept me entertained when I was bored and had nothing better to