Terri Lee Doll Factory- 15001 Wakita Rd

The Terri Lee Doll Factory Produced unique dolls, popular with little girls all over the country, from 1952-1960.  Many local women were employed here, where they put the finishing touches on the dolls, painting the features, adding the hair, and sewing the clothes.  The molds were made in a factory located on Central, just south of Hwy 18.  Developed by Violet Lee Gradwohl of Lincoln, Nebraska, in 1946, the dolls were made in the likeness of her two daughters.  Terri Lee and Connie Lynn.  Not only did the dolls have washable hair, but they had an extensive wardrobe and their own furniture.  The dolls came with a lifetime guarantee; broken or damaged dolls were admitted to the doll hospital to be made well again. Additional playmates included Jerri Lee, Linda Baby, and ethnic dolls such as Guadalupe, a Hispanic doll; Patty Jo, an African American doll; Nanook, an Eskimo; and one celebrity doll, Gene Autry.  When the doll factory closed in 1960, the building became the new home of "DeeGee of California," plush animal toys, and then in 1990 the third branch of the Apple Valley Library.  The building sits vacant now.