Raggedy Ann is a character.
Raggedy Ann is a character created by American writer Johnny Gruelle ( 1880 -- 1938 ) in a series of books he wrote and illustrated for young children . The character was created in 1915 as a doll , and was introduced to the public in the 1918 book Raggedy Ann Stories . A sequel , Raggedy Andy Stories ( 1920 ) , introduced the character of her brother , Raggedy Andy .