Toys of yesteryear

[Aggie_Ama]

My 91 year old Mammaw decided to sell her home and buy something nicer and bigger, it was time. Us five grandkids were invited to take things we wanted and help pack. I stated I wanted this book on wonders of the world, a tiny old iron (which oddly my mom already had for me) and Logstix. Seeing as there are 4 boys and me it was a bit of a heated debate who would get the Logstix, none of us have children which would logically win the argument and all of us played with the toys. I am the only girl but not the youngest nor oldest. I desperately wanted this remnant of my childhood though!



I was not there Saturday to help pack (oddly wasn't told they were going but it was Valentine's day) but got a text message from Mom "you are getting the Logstix". My birthday is tomorrow and I could now care less if I get anything, I will be picking these up and building log cabins!


Popular Science, March 1950

I am a child of the 80's but this toy from the 50's knocks my socks off! Anyone have a toy from your childhood or wish you still had?

[tulip]

I've never heard of Logistix, but they look like fun. I still have my cylinder of Lincoln Logs, though. I love them.

[Aggie_Ama]

My older brother had Lincoln Logs and would never let me play with them or his legos. My Dad's parents believed in gender specific toys but Mammaw just had the toys and crafts us to share, I don't know if it was easier or she just didn't believe in letting me be "girly" and them be "boys". So I got to play with my uncle/mom/aunt's Logstix, race cars in the living room and climb up on the little shed. The boys made pot holders on little looms, would stitch coasters or make ornaments with beads. It was always an adventure there!

I bought my niece and best friend's little girl the baby legos for their birthdays. All the girls love their building blocks, my oldest niece loves going to the hardware store!

[sundial]

I think toys of yesteryear are so interesting. Mother still has her jax set. My brother grew up with Lincoln logs and the rector set, which I had to ask permission to play with.

[Aggie_Ama]

I got these yesterday from my mom's and behold my stars- there were two sets!! And the unexpected shock of suddenly remembering the little metal box Mammaw kept them in and the jar she kept the "two-ers" (what I called the smallest ones) in.

The boys all got a jar of my Pawpaw's marbles and a pocket knife from his collection. Mom said I have to go see Mammaw to see if she kept any of his things for me.

How cool about the jacks! I had some but never could get the concept.

[tulip]

I loved playing jax. I could play well when I was a child before I lost one eye; now I don't think I could do it. I hated stepping on those jax, though (and my brother's little green army men that were everywhere on the floor)

[Aggie_Ama]

You lost an eye? Do you have a glass one? One of my husband's best friend lost his in a BB gun accident. He has a glass one, pretty weird how that is an option.

[Biciclista]

yes. Jax (jacks?) hurt worse than legos on bare feet.
I never had an erector set, but we were able to buy one at a high priced toy store in the early 90's for one of my sons. After hours of constructing a little vehicle, there were parts that didn't quite fit right. that was the end of that.
very disappointing.

[eclectic]

. I hated stepping on those jax, though (and my brother's little green army men that were everywhere on the floor)

Ditto on that one!

My children's former elementary school and other local schools still hold Jacks contests to this day.
A nice, fun, innocent past time which is great for coordination.

[GLC1968]

I hated my brothers little army men...those things ended up everywhere and they hurt when you stepped on them!

We were big fans of anything that would allow us to build. Lincoln logs, legos, etc. We had this cool toy called Riviton that was an erector set from Parker Brothers where you had these rubber rivits that stretched into holes to attach things. It was cool because you could take it all apart and build something else without wasting anything. My dad worked for Parker Brothers, so we had all the different sets and my brother and I LOVED them. Then some stupid kid shoved the rivits up his nose and choked to death...so they recalled the entire line. We begged my dad to let us keep them if we promised never to put them in our nose, but he wouldn't let us...some liablility issue due to his position at Parker Brothers. Bah.

I found this pic of an ad from 1978 for Riviton (on ebay):


We were also big fans of the 'little people' line from Fisher Price (when we were younger). Those all got recalled as well (and redsigned) because kids choked on those, too.

[emily_in_nc]

We were also big fans of the 'little people' line from Fisher Price (when we were younger). Those all got recalled as well (and redsigned) because kids choked on those, too.

YESSSSSSSSSS! Little people, little people, little people! I just LOVED me some little people! Had no idea they eventually got recalled.

[Zen]

Some of the toys I don't know, the old standbys (Lincoln logs, Legos) I do.

i have my Matchbox car collection in it's carrying case and a Spirograph but I actually bought the Spirograph on ebay

[solobiker]

I use to play with my Dad's old army men he had when he was growing up.. He used to buy them on his way home from school back in the late 30s and early 40. They are definately not the plastic kind. He ended up giving me them which is pretty cool. I also had a Spirograph which was way too much fun, and of course legos. Other then that I used to spend most of my time playing outside.

[GLC1968]

Oh yeah...loved the Spirograph! My mom even used it to 'decorate' her holiday newsletter one year. And there was another creative 'toy' that we had where you put a blank white card into this spinning thing and squirted paint onto it while it was going around. Then you had these psychadelic designs on the cards when it dried. Anyone remember those and what it was called? Man - that thing made a mess (maybe that's why we loved it so much!).

Emily - I don't know that the little people were actually recalled, but they did stop making them in favor of a much larger version (that a child couldn't possibly swallow). My dad eventually worked for Fisher Price for a few years and was telling me about the end of the little people. Now, I believe they are just called "People". Original, huh? I loved the little school bus where the little people moved up and down as the bus wheels turned! And I was also a big fan of the farm set - go figure.

[Tuckervill]

SpinArt! You can actually pay money to do that at State Fairs these days.

I had Spirograph, and my sons had never heard of it. But one day I was at a garage sale and I saw a Spirograph from the same era as mine...the kids on the box were exactly the same. The pens were still in it, too! (They were dry of course.) I still bought it, for only 25 cents!

Karen