Mechanical Train Set by Marx
Train Set
1970 (manufactured)
1970 (manufactured)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
This train set was given to the donor by her father, who in turn had been given it by a work colleague that had won it in a raffle.
Marx toys are highly collectible today, but were designed to be inexpensive, utilising techniques of mass production and reusing old designs as much as possible; one of Louis Marx's nicknames was 'the Henry Ford of the toy industry'. During the Great Depression he became a millionaire remodelling the Yo-yo and selling millions. His popular train sets were produced from 1934 in Girard, Pennsylvania, but his company was also known for its plastic figure playsets, produced in the 1950s and 1960s, based on television shows and historical events.
The company lost its preeminence from the 1950s onwards, mainly due to not advertising as aggressively as its rivals. Louis Marx sold the company in the 1970s and it was liquidated in the early 1980s. Popular designs are still manufactured today, however, by different companies: a company called Marx Trains, Inc. still produces lithographed tin trains based on former Louis Marx patterns.
Marx toys are highly collectible today, but were designed to be inexpensive, utilising techniques of mass production and reusing old designs as much as possible; one of Louis Marx's nicknames was 'the Henry Ford of the toy industry'. During the Great Depression he became a millionaire remodelling the Yo-yo and selling millions. His popular train sets were produced from 1934 in Girard, Pennsylvania, but his company was also known for its plastic figure playsets, produced in the 1950s and 1960s, based on television shows and historical events.
The company lost its preeminence from the 1950s onwards, mainly due to not advertising as aggressively as its rivals. Louis Marx sold the company in the 1970s and it was liquidated in the early 1980s. Popular designs are still manufactured today, however, by different companies: a company called Marx Trains, Inc. still produces lithographed tin trains based on former Louis Marx patterns.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Parts | This object consists of 9 parts. (Some alternative part names are also shown below)
|
| Title | Mechanical Train Set by Marx |
| Brief description | Train set, mechanical, tinplate, made by Marx, Girard, 1970. |
| Production type | Mass produced |
| Credit line | Given by Caroline Egan |
| Subject depicted | |
| Summary | This train set was given to the donor by her father, who in turn had been given it by a work colleague that had won it in a raffle. Marx toys are highly collectible today, but were designed to be inexpensive, utilising techniques of mass production and reusing old designs as much as possible; one of Louis Marx's nicknames was 'the Henry Ford of the toy industry'. During the Great Depression he became a millionaire remodelling the Yo-yo and selling millions. His popular train sets were produced from 1934 in Girard, Pennsylvania, but his company was also known for its plastic figure playsets, produced in the 1950s and 1960s, based on television shows and historical events. The company lost its preeminence from the 1950s onwards, mainly due to not advertising as aggressively as its rivals. Louis Marx sold the company in the 1970s and it was liquidated in the early 1980s. Popular designs are still manufactured today, however, by different companies: a company called Marx Trains, Inc. still produces lithographed tin trains based on former Louis Marx patterns. |
| Other number | 528 - product number |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | B.664:1 to 9-2010 |
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| Record created | July 11, 2011 |
| Record URL |
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