Pleasant Rowland was a girl living outside Chicago in the early 1950s, watching America change after coming out of World War II. She was the oldest in her family and exceptionally smart, even skipping fifth grade. But as she progressed through middle and high school, society urged her to put away childish things — the dolls, dresses and made-up plays she loved most.
Her love of literature and American history, however, was only beginning.
She grew up to be an elementary school teacher, and her passion for reading propelled her to produce something bigger. From creating language arts programs to writing and publishing children’s textbooks, Rowland was a pioneer in education and literacy.
Still, she was reminded of a childhood lost to the pressure of growing up.
She noticed that an entire generation of young girls were “being rushed headlong into adolescence,” Rowland wrote in her 1992 holiday edition of the Pleasant Company Catalogue. “They are overwhelmed by media messages that glamorize ‘growing up’ at the expense of growing.”
Upon this revelation and fueled by her continued love of girlhood, history and stories, she fused her passions together and created a company that celebrated what she once lost: American Girl.
“She met a need that I think people didn’t even know existed, that girls are important and their history is important,” says Kathy Borkowski, a historical researcher at American Girl.
Pleasant Company — now American Girl — was born after a trip to Colonial Williamsburg. Rowland came back to Middleton, a suburb of Madison, with a dream: to combine her love of American history with toys that could make the past come alive. In 1986, her dream came true.
“Pleasant, in those early days, just took a flying leap and said, ‘I think girls will like this, but they also need this,’” Borkowski says. “They don’t know they need it yet.”
“She met a need that I think people didn’t even know existed, that girls are important and their history is important.”
What began as a simple idea for Rowland has affected countless people across the United States. With American Girl’s 40th anniversary on the horizon in 2026, Rowland’s philosophy continues to shape how people, young and old, connect with history.
“Pleasant is an amazing person,” Borkowski says. “Celebrating the 40th anniversary coming up, I’m reminded again of her brilliance in being able to combine play and learning together.”
It is because of her that the Wisconsin Historical Society was able to begin its History Center project. From its Capitol Square location to the immersive experience of the exhibits — American Girl included — the center would not be possible without Rowland’s philanthropic efforts and historic expertise.
Bringing history to life, one girl at a time
The company began with three characters, each representing a different era of American history: Samantha Parkington, an orphan living through the Progressive Era; Molly McIntire, a girl growing up during World War II; and Kirsten Larson, an 1850s Swedish immigrant.
Each doll came with historically accurate clothing and accessories — all chosen with extreme care, Borkowski says.
As a historical researcher, she was responsible for ensuring that both the stories and products were historically accurate and authentic for the time period. Alongside archivists, historians, museum curators and more, Borkowski helped capture history through a lens rarely valued before: girlhood.
“What are girls thinking about, writing about, talking about? No one captures that, right?” Borkowski says. “Because it wasn’t important. And I think one thing that American Girl has done is maybe elevated the whole concept of girlhood and showing that that really is important.”
Her first project was to conduct research for the historical character Josefina Montoya, a girl living in colonial New Mexico in 1824. From traveling to the Smithsonian to visiting museums in Mexico, Borkowski says one of the hardest parts of her job was “sussing out the history of girlhood.”
Rowland required precision and demanded excellence in the research and development of the historical characters, says Borkowski, and this was no easy feat.
During Borkowski’s research for the character Kaya, a Native American girl from the Nez Perce tribe set in 1764, she had to rely on the oral histories passed down by the Nimíipuu people rather than physical documents. After first contacting the tribe, developing Kaya’s story and culture took more than five years for Borkowski and her colleagues.
From researching refrigeration during the Harlem Renaissance to understanding what a desk looked like in the 1850s versus the 1940s, this level of detail was applied to every historical character. Until her departure in 2000, Rowland was there every step of the way.
“She reviewed every single manuscript page, every product, every product detail — down to things like the color of Josefina’s hair ribbon,” Borkowski says.
With the release of more historical characters and new product lines, American Girl’s popularity skyrocketed. In 1998, toy company Mattel acquired the brand, and in 2000, Rowland retired as president of American Girl.
But Rowland’s dedication to history didn’t stop there.
A Madison legacy
Now 25 years later, at age 84, Rowland continues to make her mark on the Madison community as a philanthropist dedicated to the arts, education and historic preservation.
With donations to the Wisconsin Youth Symphony, Boys & Girls Club of Dane County, the Overture Center for the Arts and more, Rowland has influenced nearly every corner of the city.
But one recent project has become the centerpiece of her ongoing legacy: the Wisconsin Historical Society’s History Center.
“Pleasant is very invested in Madison, and Madison is a cultural center with all the projects that she’s done,” says Julie Lussier, executive director of the Wisconsin Historical Foundation, an organization that supports the Wisconsin Historical Society through grants and private contributions. “The History Center is kind of filling in that gap that you have on the Capitol [Square].”
With construction set to complete in 2027, the center will allow the society to share stories that extend beyond Wisconsin while establishing the state’s role in national history.
In April 2025, Rowland and her husband, philanthropist Jerome Frautschi, propelled the center’s fundraising campaign with more than $27.2 million in collective contributions. With a final donation of $12 million from Frautschi this past June, the $66.5 million campaign successfully closed.
“She really understands what it can mean to look back at history and what that can mean for today,” Lussier says. “I would imagine she certainly sees that in the History Center.”
Rowland began her involvement with the project around 2012, but her involvement with the society began long before. While creating her first line of historical characters, Rowland used the society’s collections to research and design historically accurate clothing for the dolls. Now, she wants to put the society’s collections at the forefront of Madison.
“She challenges us to make [the History Center] something that’s engaging and meaningful for people. To make them really reflect and think while they’re in this building,” Lussier says.
Thanks to Rowland and Frautschi, the center will double the exhibition space of the former state historical museum. It’s expected to welcome more than 200,000 guests and 60,000 students each year.
“It’s wonderful to support philanthropically, but to be really invested in the project… you can’t deny that that’s amazing,” Lussier says.
Engaging the past, inspiring the future
Susan Jevens, sales and marketing manager at the Wisconsin Historical Society Press, says the respective missions of American Girl and Wisconsin Historical Society are closely aligned.
“I think it’s always really important, from a history perspective, to really try to engage people in a way that maybe they wouldn’t think about it before,” Jevens says.
After working more than 24 years in public relations at American Girl, Jevens witnessed firsthand how Rowland’s vision has carried through not only American Girl, but through her efforts as a philanthropist dedicated to history.
“For both jobs, I felt like I was learning something,” Jevens says. “I feel like I’ve been really blessed in my careers, that I’ve been able to have that connection and do something that I feel passionate about.”
That same passion for making and sharing history continues to influence new generations today. For Mathilde Gordon, a senior at UW–Madison from Boston, her love for the historical American Girls collection transcended childhood.
“I learned a lot about the time periods and what was going on at that time in America through those books, and I think it inspired me to just kind of love reading more,” Gordon says.
Now a double major in history and economics, Gordon is hoping to attend graduate school for history and pursue a thesis on the Revolutionary War.
“I loved all the different books, but Felicity, who was my favorite … her books were about the Revolutionary War, and that’s been the one topic in history that I’ve always loved to learn about,” Gordon says. “So it’s definitely stuck with me throughout my life, and it’s definitely from the doll.”
Feature photo: Pleasant Rowland and her husband, philanthropist Jerome Frautschi, pose in front of the future site of the Wisconsin Historical Society’s new History Center, set to finish construction in 2027. Photo courtesy of Wisconsin Historical Society.