<Tr> <Th_colspan="2"> Miscellaneous </Th> </Tr> <Tr> <Th> Toys </Th> <Td> Various (dolls and playsets) </Td> </Tr> <P> American Girl is an American line of 18 - inch (46 cm) dolls released in 1986 by Pleasant Company . The dolls portray eight - to eleven - year - old girls of a variety of ethnicities . They are sold with accompanying books told from the viewpoint of the girls . Originally the stories focused on various periods of American history, but were expanded in 1995 to include characters and stories from contemporary life . Aside from the original American Girl dolls, the buyer also has the option to purchase dolls that look like themselves . The options for the line of Truly Me dolls include eye color, eye shape, skin color, hair texture, and hair length . A variety of related clothing and accessories is also available . A service for ordering a bespoke doll with features and clothing specified by the owner, dubbed Create Your Own, has also been introduced in 2017 . </P> <P> Pleasant Company was founded in 1986 by Pleasant Rowland, and its products were originally purchasable by mail order only . In 1998, Pleasant Company became a subsidiary of Mattel . The company has been awarded the Oppenheim Toy Portfolio Award eight times . </P>

When did they start making american girl dolls