Evanston residents have made significant contributions to the toy industry, creating everything from Tinkertoys to the iconic reindeer Rudolph.
The Evanston History Center is highlighting those innovators and their creations with its latest exhibit, “It’s All Fun and Games: Historic Toys of Evanston,” through Jan. 5, at its Charles Gates Dawes House, 225 Greenwood Street, Evanston.
“We have some really great toy stories in Evanston,” observed Kris Hartzell, Director of Facilities,Visitor Services, and Collections for the Evanston History Center, who curated the exhibit.
Another reason for creating this exhibit, Hartzell added, is because the Center has an extensive historic toy collection of items donated by people who live in Evanston, dating from the 1850s.
The exhibit contains hundreds of toys, including a variety of Tinkertoys.
“We have the largest Tinkertoy collection in the country, since they were invented and manufactured here,” Hartzell said. “The story behind Tinkertoys is that the man who invented
them, Charles Pajeau, was working for his father’s company and he wasn’t particularly interested in the business, which was granite carving of tombstones. He noticed that children
seemed to enjoy playing with empty spools of thread and sticks.”
Based on that concept, he created Tinkertoys in 1914. They were a hit because “you can use your imagination to create whatever you want,” Hartzell said. Sales took off during World War I, she observed, because the United States wasn’t getting imports from Germany, where the majority of toys were manufactured at that time.
The manufacturing of Tinkertoys ceased in the 1970s, Hartzell said.
The exhibit also includes items designed by Evanston resident Marvin Glass, whose creations include the games Operation, Mousetrap, Mr. Machine, and Rock ‘Em Sock ‘Em Robots.
“He had many, many very talented toy designers on his staff,” Hartzell said of Marvin Glass Associates. “After he passed away, some of his designers took over.”
She noted that one of Glass’ designers, Jeffrey Breslow, authored a book, “A Game Maker’s Life.” In it, Breslow
mentions that he played with Tinkertoys when he was little.
“We have a lot of great Rudolph stuff in the exhibit this year,” Hartzell added. That’s because Virginia, the daughter of Robert L. May, who created the character Rudolph, loaned the Center
some memorabilia from their collection.
May was a copywriter at Montgomery Ward who was asked in 1939 to create a character and a story that they could give away to children at Christmas. His character Rudolph became an
iconic symbol of the holidays. It was reported that he was inspired by his own loneliness when he was a child.
In addition to items created by Evanstonians, the exhibit also includes items that were donated by Evanston residents. Hartzell said that her favorite toy in this category is a doll from France from 1874. “She’s beautifully made and she has this beautiful period dress on,” Hartzell related.
Visitors aren’t allowed to touch the toys on display, but there is a table filled with Tinkertoys that visitors can play with and another table where visitors can play Marvin Glass’s game Hands
Down.
Visitors can take self-guided tours of the Evanston History Center’s exhibitions and the house from 1 to 4 p.m. Thursdays through Sundays at 225 Greenwood St,, Evanston. One hour docent tours are available at 2 p.m. on those days. Admission is free to members and children under 12; $10 for nonmembers Reservations are not required.
Visitors are encouraged to bring a new unwrapped toy, new or gently used book, or a food staple to the Center for the Mayor’s Annual Holiday Food, Book and Toy Drive.
Myrna Petlicki is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press.