How Raggedy Andy came

It's raggedy Wednesday, I have a pleasant surprise about the brother and sister duo! While finishing packing some of my stuff left in the trailer, I found one of my old books!

Bigger than a little golden book and full of Ann and Andy stories, but better, it introduces Andy. Little did I realize when I bought this rare find, it would include the first stories of Andy. The book opens with two letters written to Johnny by his mother She explains in one of the letters, she remembers a neighbor friend, (Bessie) of the same age, playing with Andy, and she with Ann. Both mothers made each doll a day apart from one another. Bessie moved when they were eight, if Johnny's mother could find him she would send him.

I'm not going to do the story justice but for the sake of posting, I've shorten the explanation of How Raggedy Andy came.

Daddy took Raggedy Ann down to his office, daddy wished to catch a whole lot of Raggedy Ann's cheeriness and happiness and put all this down on paper. Raggedy Ann stayed at the studio for three or four days. She was missed very, very much at home and Marcella longed for her. Neither Ann or Marcella complained.

One evening, just when Daddy was finishing his day's work, a messenger boy came with a package and a letter. Gran'ma told Daddy about her little playmate and the boy doll, Raggedy Andy. After reading the letter, Daddy opened the other package which had been inside the nice, soft, lumpy package and found---Raggedy Andy.

Raggedy Andy had been carefully folded up. His soft loppy arms were folded up in front of him and his soft, loppy legs were folded over his soft, loppy arms, and they were held this way with a rubber band. Raggedy Andy must of wondered why he was being "done up" this way, but it could not of caused him any worry, for in between his feet came over his face Daddy saw his cheery smile. After slipping off the rubber band, Daddy smoothed out the wrinkles in Raggedy Andy's arms and legs. Daddy propped Raggedy Ann and Andy up against the books on his desk, they sat facing each other.

Daddy took the rubber band and placed it around Raggedy Ann's right hand, and around Raggedy Andy's right hand, so that when he had it fixed properly they sat and held each others hands. "I will go away and let you have your visits to yourselves, although it is good to sit and share your happiness by watching you." Daddy said and wondered what happened to them since they had parted more than fifty years before.

The next morning, when Daddy unlocked his door and looked at his desk, he saw that Raggedy Andy had fallen over so that he lay with his head in the bend of Raggedy Ann's arm.

.....How Raggedy Andy came....Published under Bobbs-Merrill., Inc in 1960.

The book is written & illustrated by Johnny Gruelle and dedicated to Marcella's mama.

C & G Design.