In the case of Raggedy Ann what came first -- the book or the doll?
In the case of Raggedy Ann, it was the doll by about three
years. Illustrator and writer Johnny Gruelle rescued an old, dusty
rag doll from the attic to give to his young daughter. Since it had
no face, Gruelle painted one. They decided to name the doll Raggedy
Ann, combining the names of two poems by James Whitcomb Riley, "The
Raggedy Man" and "Little Orphan Annie." On September 17, 1915,
Gruelle received a patent on the rag doll and in 1918 the first in
a series of Raggedy Ann books was published. Raggedy Andy came
along two years later.