The Terri Lee doll was modeled after a real four-year-old girl from Lincoln, Nebraska. Violet Lee Gradwohl and her niece, artist Maxine Runci, designed the doll after Runci's toddler daughter, Drienne. They named her Terri Lee after the nickname of Gradwohl's daughter. For Gradwohl and Runci, Terri Lee was designed to be a durable companion, a friend who could be carried everywhere, which is exactly what many little girls did with their Terri Lee dolls between 1946 and 1962.

The 16-inch Terri Lee dolls have a plastic or composition head and chubby-toddler bodies. Notable characteristics of a Terri Lee doll include dimples; a closed mouth; big, painted eyes; elaborately detailed clothing; and a fabric daisy on her wrist. Some came wit...