Lusitania Baby

ClassificationsFurnishings-Recreation-dolls

Date1910-1911

Made AtGermany, Europe

MediumFelt, cotton, glass and paint

Dimensions12 × 5 3/4 × 4 in. (30.5 × 14.6 × 10.2 cm)

Credit LineGift of Harold T. Brewer

Object number30912

DescriptionThis rare Lusitania Baby doll was a souvenir sold on the ocean liner Lusitania operating in the WWI era. It is made of stuffed felt with movable arms, painted facial features, glass bead eyes, and embroidered designs, including the words "Lusitania Baby" across the chest. It also has a weighted base to hold it upright.

The first very large ships to be equipped with turbine engines were the Mauretania and the Lusitania, both built in 1906. They immediately became the fastest ships to cross the Atlantic Ocean, leading to an increase in tourism travel. Our Lusitania Baby was purchased by Arthur K. Brewer on an Atlantic crossing sometime between 1910 and 1911, but its rarity comes from the fact that the highest concentration of these dolls is located at the bottom of the ocean.

On May 7, 1915 the Lusitania was hit by a torpedo from a German U-boat, sinking the ship and killing more than half of the passengers on the vessel, with a loss of 1,198 lives including 128 American citizens. The sinking contributed to the entry of the United States into World War I two years later.

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