One of the most popular toys of all time was born in 1902, when Clifford Berryman’s famous cartoon documented President Theodore “Teddy” Roosevelt’s refusal to shoot a tethered bear during a hunting trip.  This teddy bear is paired with a rare photograph of its original owner, Mabel Dickson (1900-1981).  Mabel lost her mother at an early age, and her teddy bear was a much treasured companion.  Later, she reminisced that in times of frustration her bear received a punch in the nose!

On exhibit in the Toys from the Attic: Stories of American Childhood.

When the Brooklyn Dodgers started Jackie Robinson at first base on April 15, 1947, he broke the color barrier that relegated African American players to the Negro Leagues.  Robinson’s fame inspired many toys, including this composition child doll dressed in the Dodger’s uniform with Robinson’s number 42 on the back.

Exhibited in Toys from the Attic: Stories of American Childhood.

Measuring just 10 inches, this doll is the work of African American artist Leo Moss, a handyman in Macon, Georgia. Moss made his portrait dolls in the likeness of family, friends, and members of the community. He molded the heads out of papier-mâché and purchased the composition bodies and glass eyes.

The doll remained with the Moss family until the 1970s, and it has most recently been a part of the Myla Perkins collection. It is not marked with a name like some of Moss’s other dolls, so its gender is indiscernible.

Exhibited in The Doll Gallery.

Known as Miss Kinuko Fukushima, this was one of 58 Friendship Dolls that traveled by steamer from Japan, arriving in the Port of San Francisco in October 1927. The dolls were a gift to the people of the United States from the government of Japan in response to a gift of 12,739 dolls the US had sent to Japan in January 1927. The 58 dolls represented the Imperial household, the six largest cities, each individual prefecture, and the Japanese territories abroad. This doll has the most complete set of accessories of the 45 Friendship Dolls that have been located. 

Exhibited in The Doll Gallery.

Miss Mary was made by Rhode Island doll artist Izannah Walker (1817-1888) who ran a home-based business. Her patented dolls were constructed out of cloth, including the heads which were made using glue and a press. The dolls were then oil painted with delicate features, perhaps as portraits of the little girls who would eventually own them.  Miss Mary and her extensive wardrobe belonged to Mary Estelle Newell (b. 1857).  A daguerreotype of Mary Estelle shows that she and her doll had matching dresses.

Exhibited in The Doll Gallery from Thanksgiving through Epiphany (January 6) each year.

Only girls from wealthy families could hope to own a coveted Jumeau Bébé, a doll that resembled an idealized young girl. The French firm produced fine bisque dolls that were known for their elegant and fashionable clothing.  This doll is clad in a red silk satin dress decorated with pin tucks and a bustle. Her body is ball-jointed at the neck, shoulders, elbows, hips and knees.  Her wig is mohair, and she has tiny red post earrings.  Ethel Baker Ridenour (1878-1961), whose father co-founded the Ridenour-Baker Grocery Store in Lawrence, Kansas, owned this doll. 

This grand dollhouse was made for the children of iron baron George B. Dawson in Lebanon, Pennsylvania.  It measures over nine feet tall, eight feet wide, and four feet deep.  The architecture resembles a three-story town home with a servant’s entrance and brass bell on the street level.  The house is made of wood and coated with sand paint to replicate stone.  Faux masonry blocks (called quoins) were applied to the corners.  Metal piping discovered on the ceilings indicated that the home had gas lighting.

Exhibited in Let’s Play House.

Harvey Jesse Wells, a railroad employee, built this architecturally detailed dollhouse for his daughter, Nettie (1877-1961).  The Kansas City family lived in boarding houses for the first twelve years of Nettie’s life, so the dollhouse had to be small, compact and portable.  In addition to furnishings, textiles and leisure items (like a homemade croquet set), the dollhouse collection includes notecards and books Nettie wrote.  From these small records, we know that her doll’s name was Gracie and that she considered herself Gracie’s mama.

Exhibited in Toys from the Attic: Stories of American Childhood.

Mattel’s Ruth Handler based her 1959 best-selling toy Barbie on a German doll named Bild Lilli.  Lilli, a post-war party girl on the hunt for a rich husband, was based on the cartoon creation of artist Reinhard Beuthien.  The doll was sold both as a novelty and a children’s toy in Europe.  When Handler introduced her version of the doll in 1959, she was presented as a wholesome teenage fashion model from the fictional town of Willow, Wisconsin.  

Exhibited in Hall of Collections.

Like thousands of girls growing up in the 1960s, Donna Kay Lackman loved to play with Barbie dolls.  An only child, Donna played by herself or with her neighbor, Mary Jo.  They would spread out all over the living room, imagining that Barbie went on dates, babysitting jobs, or exotic trips.  Donna’s mother, a home economics teacher, made a spectacular wardrobe for Barbie, which included this faux leopard coat and hat.

Exhibited in Toys from the Attic: Stories of American Childhood.

Conventional wisdom dictated that boys would not play with dolls, so Hassenfeld Brothers (later Hasbro Industries) coined the term “action figure” when they introduced the G.I. Joe in 1964.  In the 1960s, most fathers had served in WWII or Korea, making this a popular toy for their sons.  This collection of G.I. Joe toys, which includes a helicopter, jeep, search light, and many more accessories, belonged to Rick Gunter of Clarkston, Michigan. He received the playsets over several birthdays and Christmases.

Exhibited in Toys from the Attic: Stories of American Childhood.

The U.S. Army Whiz Sky Fighter reflects combat innovations that took place during World War I.  The first military use for bi-planes was for reconnaissance only, but soon pilots began using machine guns in the air. This little bi-plane is operated by a clockwork mechanism.  A machine gunner is painted on the tail, and the company’s logo is featured on the wings:  “Making Childhood’s Hour Happier.” 

Exhibited in Toys from the Attic: Stories of American Childhood.

On April 6, 1924, the Army Air Service (later named the Air Force) began the first “around-the-world” flight.  Four Douglas World Cruisers departed Washington State, heading westward for Asia by way of Alaska.  The trials and tribulations of the four planes, the Seattle, Chicago, Boston and New Orleans, captured the public’s imagination.  The Wolverine Supply and Manufacturing Company produced the Aeroplane Race ‘Round the World Fliers tin game.  Armed with airplane game pieces, two to four players could spin the dial and face challenges encountered by the real pilots on their journeys.

Exhibited in Toys from the Attic: Stories of American Childhood.

During World War II, the United States War Production Board prohibited the sale of toys made from more than 7% iron, steel, zinc, or rayon. As a patriotic expression, children sacrificed many toys to wartime scrap metal drives. With materials limited, toy manufacturers turned to wood, cardboard, and plastic. These soldiers were made out of a sawdust and glue mixture. 

Exhibited in Toys, Inc.

“Just toss me up and away and I’ll come down,” read the instructions on the box of the Raggy-Doodle U.S. Parachute Trooper, a stuffed doll with a silk parachute.  Steve Otto’s paratrooper didn’t always come down—he remembers it was often stuck on the roof. Growing up during World War II, Steve did everything he could for the war effort. He scanned the skies for enemy aircrafts as a Junior Air Raid Warden, collected the tires from his father’s car for the rubber drives, and corresponded with a cousin who served as a pilot overseas. 

Exhibited in Toys from the Attic: Stories of American Childhood.

This well-appointed child’s tool chest includes a hammer, saw, screwdriver, hatchet, clamps, miter box, and fret saw.  A colorful chromolithographed illustration on the inside of the lid features two scenes:  boys building a rabbit hutch and boys working in a woodshop.  The tool box was both a fun toy and a practical way to learn valuable carpentry skills. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, children’s tool chests, building sets, and scientific toys were marketed primarily to boys due to the perception of the time that architecture, engineering, and scientific careers were exclusively masculine.

Exhibited in Toys from the Attic: Stories of American Childhood.

Although this Singer Sewing Machine was marketed as a children’s product, it was a fully functioning device capable of producing high-quality stitches. “Teach them to make clothes for their dolls,” the box announced, appealing to parents’ desire for their daughters to learn “practical” and “useful” skills.

Exhibited in Toys from the Attic: Stories of American Childhood.

Toys reflecting Biblical themes were popular with Victorian parents as a means of instilling religious values in their children. Called “Sunday Toys,” they were favored over secular toys on the Sabbath. This collection of two-by-two animals includes everything from elephants and zebras to grasshoppers and snails.

Exhibited in Toys from the Attic: Stories of American Childhood.

In 1832, William Horner invented an optical device called the daedaleum. It utilized picture strips set into a slotted drum.  When the drum spins, the viewer could peer through the slits and see the illusion of motion. The device received little attention until William Lincoln and the Milton Bradley Company patented it as the zoetrope in 1867. This zoetrope was sold by the London Stereoscopic Company, which held the exclusive license from Milton Bradley in England. An expensive toy, it cost more than the average worker could earn in a week.

Exhibited in Optical Toys.

The Rocket Space Pistol was based on the futuristic cartoon strip about Buck Rogers.  The story, set in the 25th century, featured guns that fired “explosive rockets.” Dumont Reed of Pawnee County, Kansas, received this toy pistol for his birthday.  It emitted a pop sound when the handle was cocked.  Dumont especially remembered this detail:  “It was the loudest snap you ever heard—Bam!”

Exhibited in Toys from the Attic: Stories of American Childhood.

In the 1950s and 60s, space exploration captured children’s imaginations. Many toys were created that predicted future modes of transportation. The Astro 8 features a single pilot under a clear plastic dome, surrounded by lithographed instruments. Operating with friction generated by three wheels, a spinning disk produced sparks under the red and green colored plastic panels on the body of the saucer. 

Exhibited in Toys, Inc.