A Holly Hobbie-ist

When Joann Thomas, of Cromwell, was around 10 years old her mother gifted her with a Holly Hobbie rag doll and a collectible plate.

Now more than 50 years later, it is Thomas’ fondness for the lovable, rag-dress-wearing little character that has helped bring other collectors to Beaver Dam where an annual convention has been held since 2012.

On July 28 and 29, around 18 Holly Hobbie-ist are expected to arrive in town for the Christmas in July-themed event. This is the 29th year for the annual convention which Beaver Dam has hosted since 2012, except for when it was canceled in 2020 and 2021 due to the pandemic.

It was the convention that first stirred Thomas’ interest in Holly Hobbie collecting even though she had developed a love for her years prior.

With just her doll and plate from her mother along with a couple of other items, Thomas began researching Holly on the internet.

“When I Googled Holly Hobbie in 2010, I saw an annual convention and I thought ‘that’s it.’ I’ve been involved and collecting ever since.”

It is the simpleness and sweetness and the memory of the bygone-days that draws Thomas into the character, she said.

Holly Hobbie is a fictional character, named after her creator, first created in 1967. She originally started out as a greeting card but soon grew into a line of rag dolls before taking over many other lines of collectibles in the 1970s. Other dolls were added to the series in the 1980s. The most popular image of the character is that of a girl in a giant blue bonnet and a patchwork dress. Denise Holly Hobbie is now 80 years old and lives in Conway, Mass.

She attended her first convention in 2010 in Illinois and again the following year in Ohio. In 2012, Thomas noticed there was no mention of a convention in the Holly Hobbie newsletter she received. She called her friend, Margarett Wallace who put out the newsletter to ask if there was going to be an annual convention in the fall. She soon found out that no one had stepped up to plan one. She asked what was necessary for a city to host the event – a motel, a restaurant and a meeting place. That’s when Thomas, with the help of Wallace and her husband Roger, began planning the first convention in Beaver Dam in 2012. Eleven years later, the city is still the site of the get-together that Thomas and friend Susan Johnstone, of Hershey, Penn., now plan together following Wallace’s passing.

People from multiple states and Canada have attended the convention over the years, Thomas said. Beaver Dam Tourism supports the group with some funding and Beaver Dam City Hall provides them with a meeting space. During the convention there are information sessions, show-and-tell where attendees bring collectibles they have found throughout the year, lots of fellowship and an auction. Thomas said she also hopes it promotes interest in Holly Hobbie. There is a free table at the convention where attendees bring duplicate items they have for others who might be interested. The public is invited to come by on Saturday morning from 9-11 a.m. to look, browse the items and learn more information, Thomas said.

Those interested in learning more about Holly Hobbie and the convention can find information on the group’s Facebook page, “Holly Hobbie Collectors.”

Thomas said she is still adding to her collection and gets most of her stuff from antique stores, yard sales and friends

“You can find almost anything you want on eBay, but it is meeting fellow collectors at the convention and the thrill of the hunt,” that helps keeps her interest.