Omar Khalid
The first plastic toys appeared in the late 19th century, made from celluloid, the first man-made plastic, invented in 1863 and patented in 1855. In the 1930s, celluloid was phased out due to its high flammability, and companies began to experiment with other plastics. In the late 1940s, Fisher-Price became the first company to produce its entire product line from plastic, and by the 1950s, companies like Hasbro were marketing plastic toys like GI Joe.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| First plastic used in toys | Celluloid |
| Year celluloid invented | 1863 or 1869 |
| Inventor of celluloid | John Wesley Hyatt or John and Isaiah Hyatt |
| First company to produce an entire product line from plastic | Fisher-Price |
| Year Fisher-Price was founded | 1931 |
| Year Fisher-Price introduced plastic toys | Late 1940s |
| First fully synthetic plastic | Bakelite |
| Year Bakelite was produced | First quarter of the 20th century |
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What You'll Learn
- The first plastic toys were made of celluloid in the late 19th century
- Bakelite was the first entirely synthetic plastic, created in the early 20th century
- Fisher-Price was the first company to produce an entire product line from plastic in the late 1940s
- Post-WWII, the development of plastics accelerated with the discovery of new materials
- Drawbacks of early plastics like celluloid included high inflammability
The first plastic toys were made of celluloid in the late 19th century
Plastic toys have come a long way since their early beginnings in the late 19th century. The first plastic toys were made of celluloid, invented in 1863 by John Wesley Hyatt in upstate New York. Hyatt, a printer and the son of a blacksmith, created celluloid in response to an advertisement offering $10,000 for a substitute for elephant tusk ivory in the production of billiard balls. Billiards was growing in popularity, and the expense of obtaining African ivory was becoming increasingly costly.
Celluloid, the first synthetic plastic, was a versatile material that could imitate the look of ivory, amber, and tortoiseshell. Soon, it was used for various products, including hairbrush handles, cufflinks, combs, and other toiletries. It was also used for photographic film but was banned in 1951 due to its high flammability. Despite this, celluloid was used to make children's toys and dolls.
The development of celluloid launched the modern age of man-made plastics. Before long, other types of plastics emerged, such as cellulose acetate, which addressed the need for a safer plastic due to celluloid's inflammability issues. However, cellulose acetate had its drawbacks, including high water absorption and poor dimensional stability when exposed to heat or sunlight.
As the plastics industry evolved, companies like Fisher-Price emerged in the 1930s and became pioneers in producing entire toy lines made of plastic. The use of plastic in toys allowed for longer-lasting decorations and brighter colors, appealing to children and driving the widespread adoption of plastic in the toy industry.
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Bakelite was the first entirely synthetic plastic, created in the early 20th century
The first plastic used in toys was celluloid, which was invented in 1863 or 1869 by John Wesley Hyatt in upstate New York. The first plastic toys made of celluloid appeared in the late 19th century.
However, celluloid was considered dangerous due to its high flammability, and the world's first entirely synthetic plastic, Bakelite, was created in the early 20th century. Belgian-born chemist Leo Baekeland was granted a patent for a "Method of making insoluble products of phenol and formaldehyde" on December 7, 1909.
Bakelite was a hard, compact, insoluble, and infusible plastic that could be moulded into various shapes. It was created by applying heat and pressure to a mix of phenol and formaldehyde, which reacts to form a thermosetting phenol formaldehyde resin polyoxybenzylmethyl-englycolanhydride. This process was facilitated by a steam pressure vessel called the Bakelizer.
The creation of Bakelite was revolutionary for the chemical industry, which at the time derived most of its income from cloth dyes and explosives. Bakelite's commercial success inspired the industry to develop other synthetic plastics, marking the start of the modern plastics industry. By the time of Baekeland's death in 1944, the world production of Bakelite was estimated at around 175,000 tons, and it was used in over 15,000 different products.
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Fisher-Price was the first company to produce an entire product line from plastic in the late 1940s
Plastic toys first appeared in the late 19th century with the invention of celluloid, the first man-made plastic. However, it was not until after World War II that plastic toys became firmly established. During the war, many toy manufacturers struggled with the scarcity of materials, and companies like Irwin found innovative ways to produce toys from scraps and non-essential materials.
In the late 1940s, Fisher-Price became the first company to produce an entire product line made from plastic. Founded in 1930 during the Great Depression, Fisher-Price initially focused on creating wooden toys, such as their popular Dr. Doodle toy, which was first sold in 1931. By the late 1940s, the company was barely ten years old and made the pioneering decision to transition to plastic toys.
Plastic offered several advantages over traditional materials like wood and metal. It was more durable, retained colour and decorations longer, and could be produced in bright colours. Fisher-Price recognised these benefits and identified plastic as a material that could enhance the aesthetics and longevity of its toys. The company's decision to adopt plastic was a significant success, and by the end of the 1950s, over half of Fisher-Price's toys incorporated plastics.
The success of Fisher-Price's plastic toys inspired competitors to follow suit. For instance, the Ideal Toy Company produced three million plastic phones in just a few months. Other companies, like Hasbro, marketed popular boys' toys such as GI Joe in the 1950s, contributing to the growing popularity of plastic toys. By the 1960s, Fisher-Price had expanded its plastic toy offerings, introducing the Play Family (later known as Little People) product line, which became one of its best-known and most popular series.
Over the years, Fisher-Price diversified its product lines, targeting different age groups and exploring new toy categories. The company continued to embrace innovative materials and technologies, such as computer products for children in the late 1990s. Today, Fisher-Price remains a prominent name in the toy industry, known for its diverse range of products that cater to infants, toddlers, and preschoolers.
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Post-WWII, the development of plastics accelerated with the discovery of new materials
The first man-made plastic was developed by British inventor Alexander Parkes and patented in 1855. He called it Parkesine, which was made from a combination of cellulose nitrate and camphor. However, the first plastic used in toys was celluloid, developed in 1863 or 1869 by John Wesley Hyatt in upstate New York. Celluloid was the first synthetic plastic, and its development launched the modern age of man-made plastics.
During World War II, there was an explosion in the manufacture and use of plastics, accelerated by a scarcity of traditional materials. The worldwide production of plastics quadrupled during the war, increasing from under 100,000 tonnes in 1939 to 365,000 tonnes in 1945. The war created a need for durable, inexpensive, lightweight materials that could be manufactured quickly. For example, women gave up their nylon stockings so they could be used to make rope and parachutes.
In the 1950s, companies like Fisher-Price identified plastic as a material that could help incorporate longer-lasting decorations and brighter colours into its toys. This led to the production of plastic toys, with competitors like the Ideal Toy Company adopting this business model and producing three million plastic phones in just a few months. The Barbie doll, which first appeared on the market in the 1950s, has now sold over a billion copies.
The progress made by the plastics industry's post-war development push into new materials was critical to this success. Thermosetting plastics became widespread, and highly robust polystyrene and polyethylene were used for toys.
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Drawbacks of early plastics like celluloid included high inflammability
The first plastic used in toys was celluloid, which was invented in 1863 or 1869 by John Wesley Hyatt in upstate New York. The first plastic toys made of celluloid appeared in the late 19th century. Celluloid was the first synthetic plastic and was highly inflammable.
Celluloid was created in response to an advertisement that offered $10,000 for a substitute for elephant tusk ivory in the production of billiard balls. Before long, celluloid was used in many popular products, including jewellery, pens, and toiletries. It was also used for photographic film but was banned in 1951 due to its high inflammability. Despite its volatile nature, celluloid was also used to make toys and dolls for children.
Celluloid was an affordable and practical substitute for natural materials such as ivory, tortoiseshell, horn, linen, cotton, and linen. It was tough, flexible, mouldable, and resistant to water, oils, and dilute acids. It could be produced at a low cost in a variety of colours. However, one of its drawbacks was its tendency to soften under heat. It was also unsuitable for new, efficient fabrication processes such as injection moulding.
To address the issue of inflammability, cellulose acetate was developed in the early 20th century. However, it had its own drawbacks, including high water absorption and poor dimensional stability when exposed to heat or sunlight. Some manufacturers then started using cellulose acetate butyrate, which is more resistant to moisture and heat, but it was expensive and emitted a strong odour. Many of these issues were eventually solved with the development of polystyrene and polyethylene.
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Frequently asked questions
The first plastic toys were made of celluloid and appeared in the late 19th century.
Celluloid is now the generic term for all cellulose nitrate and camphor plastics. It was invented in 1863 or 1869 by John Wesley Hyatt in upstate New York. It was the first commercially successful plastic.
In the early 20th century, celluloid was replaced by cellulose acetate, which was safer but had issues with heat and sunlight. In the 1930s, celluloid was phased out due to its high flammability. During World War II, the Irwin Toy Company made pinwheel toys from old celluloid X-ray negatives. After the war, thermosetting plastics became widespread, including softer vinyl, robust polystyrene, and polyethylene. In the 1950s, companies like Fisher-Price began producing entire product lines from plastic.
In the 1930s, the Irwin Toy Company made celluloid wind-up toys. In the late 1940s, Fisher-Price became the first company to produce its entire product line from plastic. Ideal Toy Company copied Fisher-Price's model and sold three million plastic telephones in a few months. In the 1950s, Hasbro marketed plastic toys for boys, including GI Joe. Mattel introduced the Barbie doll in the late 1950s.
