Barclay Manufacturing Company
Encyclopedia
The Barclay Manufacturing Company was an American metal toy company that specialised in diecast toy cars and hollowcast toy soldiers
. Due to their being purchased at five and dime stores, collectors refer to Barclays toy soldiers as "Dimestore soldiers
".
Barclay Manufacturing was formed by Donze and Michael Levy in about 1922. The name of the company came from Barclay Street in Hoboken, New Jersey
.
In its heyday Barclay produced 500,000 toys a week, making them the largest toy soldier manufacturer at that time in the United States. In 1939 Barclay acquired another toy soldier company, Tommy Toy and its sculptor Olive Kooken. Prior to the company temporary closing in 1942 the foot soldiers were purchased individually for a nickel
/five cents.
Despite the inroads of plastic toy soldiers, Barclay kept manufacturing their soldiers in metal. Following World War II Barclay changed the helmets on their soldiers to the M1 Helmet
. In about 1951 Barclay conserved metal by eliminating bases on their soldiers, with collectors nicknaming them podfoot soldiers. The soldiers were painted similarly to American comic book
s of the time, olive drab uniforms with green helmets with "enemy" soldiers in red uniforms with white helmets. With the rising cost of metal, the soldiers had risen in price to 15 cents.
In 1960 the lead soldiers were removed from Woolworths
and other dimestores to be sold in hobby shops. From 1964 the soldiers uniforms were painted in green to reflect the modern US Army. The 1960s would prove to be a turbulent time for the "old line" toy manufacturers. Before the decade was out, the A.C Gilbert company and Lionel, both legends in the toy world, would be gone. Marx, though not gone, would be severely crippled.
The company ceased trading in 1971 due to their inability to compete with plastics and the rapidly changing market, not because of lead issues, which is a popular misconception. The old firm's trademark rights were acquired in the 1990s, and now The Barclay Company manufactures solid metal reproductions of Barclay and Manoil Manufacturing Co.
figures.
Toy Soldiers
A toy soldier is a miniature figurine that represents a soldier, but the term may also refer to:In film and television:*Toy Soldiers , an action/drama film in which terrorists take a school hostage...
. Due to their being purchased at five and dime stores, collectors refer to Barclays toy soldiers as "Dimestore soldiers
Dimestore soldiers
Dimestore soldiers are a name first given by collector and author Don Pielin to American made toy soldiers sold individually in five and dime stores from the 1930s to the 1950s before being replaced by plastic toy soldiers called army men. Though most figures were hollowcast metal, composition and...
".
Barclay Manufacturing was formed by Donze and Michael Levy in about 1922. The name of the company came from Barclay Street in Hoboken, New Jersey
Hoboken, New Jersey
Hoboken is a city in Hudson County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city's population was 50,005. The city is part of the New York metropolitan area and contains Hoboken Terminal, a major transportation hub for the region...
.
In its heyday Barclay produced 500,000 toys a week, making them the largest toy soldier manufacturer at that time in the United States. In 1939 Barclay acquired another toy soldier company, Tommy Toy and its sculptor Olive Kooken. Prior to the company temporary closing in 1942 the foot soldiers were purchased individually for a nickel
Nickel (United States coin)
The nickel is a five-cent coin, representing a unit of currency equaling five hundredths of one United States dollar. A later-produced Canadian nickel five-cent coin was also called by the same name....
/five cents.
Despite the inroads of plastic toy soldiers, Barclay kept manufacturing their soldiers in metal. Following World War II Barclay changed the helmets on their soldiers to the M1 Helmet
M1 Helmet
The M1 helmet is a combat helmet that was used by the American military from World War II until it was succeeded by the PASGT helmet beginning in 1985. For over forty years, the M1 was standard issue for the U.S...
. In about 1951 Barclay conserved metal by eliminating bases on their soldiers, with collectors nicknaming them podfoot soldiers. The soldiers were painted similarly to American comic book
American comic book
An American comic book is a small magazine originating in the United States and containing a narrative in the form of comics. Since 1975 the dimensions have standardized at 6 5/8" x 10 ¼" , down from 6 ¾" x 10 ¼" in the Silver Age, although larger formats appeared in the past...
s of the time, olive drab uniforms with green helmets with "enemy" soldiers in red uniforms with white helmets. With the rising cost of metal, the soldiers had risen in price to 15 cents.
In 1960 the lead soldiers were removed from Woolworths
F. W. Woolworth Company
The F. W. Woolworth Company was a retail company that was one of the original American five-and-dime stores. The first successful Woolworth store was opened on July 18, 1879 by Frank Winfield Woolworth in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, as "Woolworth's Great Five Cent Store"...
and other dimestores to be sold in hobby shops. From 1964 the soldiers uniforms were painted in green to reflect the modern US Army. The 1960s would prove to be a turbulent time for the "old line" toy manufacturers. Before the decade was out, the A.C Gilbert company and Lionel, both legends in the toy world, would be gone. Marx, though not gone, would be severely crippled.
The company ceased trading in 1971 due to their inability to compete with plastics and the rapidly changing market, not because of lead issues, which is a popular misconception. The old firm's trademark rights were acquired in the 1990s, and now The Barclay Company manufactures solid metal reproductions of Barclay and Manoil Manufacturing Co.
Manoil Manufacturing Co.
Manoil Manufacturing Company was an American metal and plastic toy company. From June 1940 they were located on Providence Street, in Waverly, NY...
figures.