Toys Through the Years

Toys are universal. They span across all countries, all times, and all ages. They are playthings when we are children. They are symbols of our past when we are adults. More than personal memories, they are also a symbol of the times. The teddy bear, for example, will forever be linked to the time of Teddy Roosevelt. And what could be a clearer reflection of women’s fashion through the years than Barbie’s clothes? In our Toys Through the Years collection, you’ll find fun stuff for both kids and adults. You’ll find histories of toys that bring out the most fascinating facts about them, not to mention the fond memories they’ll evoke. You’ll find toys to make for toymakers of all skills. You’ll even find magical tales where toys come to life. Lastly, there is plenty of information about collecting toys and toy awards. May the items we point to here bring back your fondest childhood memories, or create some new ones.

Toys Through the Years

Toys Through the Years: Books

100 Greatest Baby Boomer Toys by Mark Rich (2000): Remember the original Mr. Potato Head, where plastic accessories were designed to decorate real potatoes? What about Chatty Cathy, the first of the toys that talked with the pull of a string? Many colored photographs accompany the descriptions and histories of all 100 toys.

Kid Stuff: Great Toys from Our Childhood by David Hoffman (1997): Did you know that View-Masters were also used as training tools by the military in World War II? Or that the name of the Pez candy dispenser is a shortened form of the German word, "pfefferminz," meaning peppermint? These and other fascinating facts (and photographs) fill Hoffman's toy history.

The Story of American Toys: From Puritans to the Present by Richard O'Brien (1990): Organized chronologically, you'll find chapters dedicated to various eras. Some chapter titles include "Depression Playthings" and "The Soaring Sixties." A more formal and thorough history than those by Hoffman and Rich, but no less interesting.

For Kids: Toys: Amazing Stories Behind Some Great Inventions by Don Wulffson (2000): The first sentence of the book; "Play Doh began as a product for cleaning wallpaper," is just one of its many fun facts. The book doesn't feature color pictures, but has cute and funny line drawings instead.

Toys Through the Years: Websites

History of Toys and Games: A History Channel online exhibit features a toy timeline, fun historical facts about various toys, and information about some toy inventors. Take their toy quiz to see just how knowledgeable you are about the fun stuff.

Mattel History: A historical timeline beginning in 1945. You'll find out that Barbie debuted in 1959 and Hot Wheels ten years later.

Wham-O: The history of the company responsible for the Frisbee, the Hula Hoop, and the Hacky Sack.

Individual Toys

Individual Toys: Books

G.I. Joe: The Complete Story of America's Favorite Man of Action by John Michlig (1998): From fighting the industry tendency to call him a "doll," to G.I. Joe's unique construction, every aspect of G.I. Joe is covered here. The colorful layout and many full-page pictures make this detailed history even more remarkable.

For Kids: From Head to Toe: How a Doll is Made by Susan Kuklin (1994): Shows how dolls are designed, how their eyes are set, and even how their clothes are made.

For Kids: How Teddy Bears are Made: A Visit to the Vermont Teddy Bear Factory by Ann Morris (1994): Do you know how a teddy bear is stuffed? Have you seen the machine that cuts out the fabric for the teddy bear? All of these things, and more, are shown in this book.

Individual Toys: Websites

Etch-a-Sketch: The official site with tricks and tips as well as an Online Version of the
toy!

Mr. Potato Head: Hasbro's official site. Mr. Potato Head celebrated his 50th birthday in 2002. The site contains a great historical timeline of this classic toy as well as various activities that you can do.

Toys to Make

Toys to Make: Books

Bean Bag Buddies by Nicki Wheeler (2001): Lots of buddies (mostly animals) to make, over fifty projects in all. A cuddly koala, a crazy cow, a knobby kneed flamingo, and a sparkly bat are among the projects.

Bearmaking 101 by Carol-Lynn Rossel Waugh (1999): Includes patterns and detailed instructions. Photographs show step-by-step how to sew the bears' facial features, stuff the bears' limbs, and make joints for moveable bears. Projects include both stuffed bears and puppets.

Knits for Barbie Doll by Nicky Epstein (2001): Knit evening dresses, shawls, short sets and more. And if you prefer to crochet, there's Crochet for Barbie Doll by the same author.

Make Your Own Toys by Petra Boase (2001): The wonderful toys in this book use a variety of skills and are for a variety of age groups. Seems like there is something for every toy maker and ever toy recipient! Try a knitted polar bear, number blocks, or a village play mat.

Making Moving Toys by Pippa and Ian Howes (1999): These projects are of varying levels of difficulty. Some are wooden and require saws and drills, others are simply paper or cardboard. You'll find instructions and telmplates for a wooden acrobat, a miniature carousel, a small magnetic puppet theater, and more.

New Wood Puzzle Designs: A Guide to the Construction of Both New and Historic Puzzles (2002) by James W. Follette: As the author explains, these puzzles can often be made from scraps of wood in a fairly short amount of time. Solutions are, of course, included.

Toy and Models: A Sourcebook of Ideas (2003) by Rodney Peppé: A sourcebook of ideas for those interested in making toys and models, not a typical ‘how-to’ book. Eight plans for simpler toys and models are included at the end of the book.

For Kids: Earth-Friendly Toys: How to Make Fabulous Toys and Games from Reusable Objects by George Pfiffner (1994): What can you make from a cardboard tube and a magazine page? A pinwheel, of course! Juice can stilts and a cardboard castle are two more of the projects in this book.

For Kids: The Grolier Kids Crafts Toy Book by Jill and David Hancock (1997): A doll, juggling balls, a teddy bear, and much more! Try your hand at these projects, complete with colored drawings to go with the instructions.

For Kids: The Muppets Make Puppets! by Cheryl Henson and the Muppet Workshop (1994): What fun things can you use to make puppet hair? How about pipe cleaners or plastic pot scrubbers. Make funny puppets out of other houshold items like whisks, wooden spoons and sponges!

Toys That Have Come to Life

Toys That Have Come to Life: Books

Corduroy by Don Freeman (1968): The classic picture book tale of a department story teddy bear who goes in search of a lost button and finds a new friend.

The Doll People by Ann M. Martin (2000): A family of porcelain dolls that has lived in the same house for 100 years is surprised when a new family of plastic dolls arrives and doesn't follow The Doll Code of Honor.

The Indian in the Cupboard by Lynn Reid Banks (also DVD and Videocassette): A nine-year-old boy receives a plastic Indian, a cupboard, and a little key for his birthday and finds himself involved in adventure when the Indian comes to life in the cupboard and befriends him.

The Steadfast Tin Soldier by Hans Christian Anderson: A tin solider with one leg falls in love with a beautiful paper dancer in this classic, tragic tale. This title's link shows you the various editions of this book that we own, as well as the feature film version.

The Velveteen Rabbit by Margery Bianco Williams: A toy velveteen rabbit learns what it is that makes you real-love. You'll find this story available as a book, video, kit, and even e-book!

Toys That Have Come to Life: Videos

Many of the books about toys that have come to life are also videos and their links will take you to the movie versions, as well. These are additional titles.

Toy Story (Videocassette): When Andy gets a Buzz Lightyear, a new toy, for his birthday, he starts paying less attention to Woody, his longtime favorite toy. The toys become rivals, until they need to band together to fight a bully. Also try the sequel Toy Story 2.

The Nutcracker: The library owns several versions of this famous ballet, including one performed by the Bolshoi Ballet in Moscow, Nutcrackers on Ice, and even Barbie in the Nutcracker.

Toys and Science

Toys and Science: Books

For Kids: Color and Noise! Let's Play with Toys! by Janice Lobb (2001): A great book for the younger set, this book explains the science behind common playthings. It answers lots of questions, such as, "How do magnets work," and "What makes toys go?"

Paper Science Toys by E. Richard Churchill (1991): Each chapter in this detailed science book is devoted to a science topic (center of gravity, for example) and features accompanying experiments with explanations.

Toys in Space: Exploring Science with the Astronauts by Carolyn Sumners (1997): Astronauts have taken toys into space and have done experiments with them to find out about the different effects of lacking gravity. Sumner offers these experiments for classroom use, as well as procedures and information you will need to help students learn from the experiments and have fun at the same time!

For Kids: Science Projects About the Physics of Toys and Games by Robert Gardner (2000): You can learn lots of science concepts from playing with toys. Some of these experiments are simple (Make a Balancing Toy) while others are more complex (Make a Toy Electric Motor.)

Toys and Science: Websites

Slinky Science Teaching Guide: Describes various activities that you can do with Slinkys in the classroom, and what can be learned from these activities. Also gives a brief history of the Slinky's serendipitous invention. You'll find another Slinky science page (Slinky in Hand) at the Exploratorium's website.

How Stuff Works (Physics): The Physics section of the How Stuff Works website offers an explanation of the science behind various toys including the MagnaDoodle, the boomerang, yo-yos, footballs, and water slides. Visit the Toys & Games section for info on how the Game Cube, chess computers, See 'n Say and other playthings work.

Toy Collecting, Awards and Finders

Toy Collectors' Guides

Antique Trader Toys Price Guide edited by Kyle Husfloen (2001): Chapters one through 11 cover pre-World War II toys, while the last 11 include more recent toys. Photographs are mostly black and white and prices are often listed as ranges.

The Barbie Doll Years by Patrick C. Olds and Joyce L. Olds (2002): Barbie dolls are listed alphabetically, by stock number, and also by year. Other categories include Skipper dolls by year and Barbie oufits.

O’Brien’s Collecting Toys edited by Karen O’Brien (2004): Toy guide focusing on toys from the pre-World War II and early baby boomer years. The chapters contain brief histories and introductions to the various types of toys.

Schroeder's Collectible Toys: Antique to Modern Price Guide edited by Sharon and Bob Huxford (2002): Toys are arranged alphabetically within broad categories such as Games, Banks and Battery Operated toys, though a few like Barbie and Beanie Babies warrant their own chapters. Small black & white photos of some items appear throughout.

Tomart's Encyclopedia of Action Figures by Sally Ann Berk and others (1998): Subtitled, "The 1000 Most Popular Collectives of All Time," this guide offers a range of values for each item and pictures of most figures (in original packages).

Toys & Prices 2005 edited by Karen O’Brien: A comprehensive guide to childhood toys from the post World War II era. Toys are listed alphabetically by the type of toy. Each chapter contains new toys listings and updated pricing information.

Warmans’ Toys Field Guide edited by Mary Sieber (2004): A pocket-sized guide to toy prices, arranged alphabetically by the type of toy. The guide includes thousands of listings with color photographs.

Toy Awards & Finders

Oppenheim Toy Portfolio: The Oppenheims are well-known for testing a variety of toys, books, and videos for infants through later elementary school years. You can find many of these reviews on their website.