What a fantastic list, thanks to everyone for your replies.Earlier today I wrote to the Topsy foundation to see if they could tell me the origin of Topsy and they also replied that it came from Uncle Tom's Cabin. I have since looked her up in Wikipeadia where she is described as'' A "ragamuffin" young slave girl. When asked if she knows who made her, she professes ignorance of both God and a mother, saying "I s'pect I growed. Don't think nobody never made me." She is transformed by Little Eva's love. During the early-to-mid 1900s, several doll manufacturers created Topsy and Topsy-type dolls."" I think this is more likely the explanation she may have been a bit of a ragamuffin earning the name Topsy Thanks again everyone Steve On Fri, Oct 7, 2011 at 6:56 PM, Nivard Ovington <ovington1@sky.com> wrote: > Hi Steve > > Topsy was apparently a character in Uncle Toms Cabin by Harriet Beecher > Stowe > > Could this be the origin rather than a place? > > Nivard Ovington in Cornwall (UK) > > > > > Hello > > > > I had a Great Aunty whose nick name was Topsy, and I have heard this was > the > > name of a South African town prominent around the time of the Boer War. > > Can anyone tell me if anything about the origin of Topsy > > Thanks > > Steve > > > ------------------------------- > To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to > SOUTH-AFRICA-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without the > quotes in the subject and the body of the message >