New museum nicknamed ‘The Doll House’
June 11th, 2012The opening of a new museum this month in Putnam County, Tennessee, is something the local community is sure to celebrate.
It will be known as the Patton House Museum but it is already being called ‘The Doll House’ because of its contents, namely 2,000 dolls and doll furniture.
The dolls represent the collection of Velma Thompson, who died last October, and come from all over the world.
“People brought her dolls from their different travels,” Melinda Swann, a close friend, told the Herald-Citizen. “She became a researcher of dolls and also was a ‘doll doctor.’ She’d research a doll’s origins and fix any broken dolls brought to her.”
Velma Thompson’s love of quilting and needlework is visible in each display at the museum. She was very hands on with each doll — from knitting each doll’s clothing to creating the bed covers, rugs and curtains on the walls of the room.
There are even little parts of history in each display. One doll bedroom features fabric in the form of curtains from the original city school.
It is hoped that the new museum will be a great tourist attraction and it’s already got our vote.
