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Collection
Hubley Manufacturing Company Catalogs and Newsletters
Title
Hubley Manufacturing Company Catalogs and Newsletters
Object ID
MG0565
Date Range
1922-1965
  1 document  
Collection
Hubley Manufacturing Company Catalogs and Newsletters
Title
Hubley Manufacturing Company Catalogs and Newsletters
Description
This collection contains catalogs and price lists of the items made by the Hubley Manufacturing Company in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. The primary products were toys and decorated repeating cap guns, rifles and holsters. The first miniature toys were made of cast iron; later, plastic became the prominent material. In its earlier years, the company made a line of "metal art goods," which included lamps, tables, bookends, doorstops and knockers.
Admin/Biographical History
"The Hubley Manufacturing Company of Lancaster, Pennsylvania, one of the oldest and largest makers of toys in the United States, was founded in 1894 by John E. Hubley to manufacture equipment and accessories for electric trains. Financial difficulties forced Mr. Hubley to sell the entire stock in 1909. At this time the electric train business was discontinued and the cast iron toy business started. Among the first toys produced were a coal range, circus wagons and mechanical banks, all collector's items today.
Included in the 68,000 square feet of floor space in the Hubley plant were a die-cast room, warehouse, tool room, paint room and all the special assembly machinery. Besides making their cast iron toys, the company made castings for other companies in Lancaster which were without foundry equipment.
By 1940 increased freight costs and foreign competition forced the company to look for other materials. During World War II scarcity of metal forced the company out of the toy business and into war-related items. After the Korean conflict ended and regulations on metal were suspended, cast iron toy production resumed.
Following common manufacturing methods of the time, Hubley toys of the 1890s, and for a time thereafter, were cast in sand molds in two parts which were then riveted together to form the toy. All toys were designed by John Hubley, who had remained deeply interested in children's playthings since the time he first made his own children's wooden toys.
In 1936 Hubley started casting in multiple cavity steel dies. Die castings were broken off, trimmed, and tumbled in revolving cylindrical machines. They were then taken to the paint department where they were given baked enamel or lacquer, air-dried paint finishes in various colors. At one time, a dozen girls were employed in the paint department. Portions of the earlier toys were handpainted and some were dipped.
Each different toy was started on its own moving assembly line where parts were added, details sprayed on, oiling and inspection took place and the assembly completed. For example, a fire engine took shape on one line. It started as a red chassis. The rubber-tired wheels were added, followed by the spraying on of the radiator, bumpers and headlights. The driver was added, and the ladder, fire axes and other accessories followed. Near the end of the line, the toy was individually boxed and packed in a corrugated container. In 1949, due to union disputes, the foundry was closed. This was a difficult decision for the firm, since Hubley was one of the first companies to devote their entire factory to die casting.
The Hubley Company maintained a designing department where ideas were conceived and developed for model forms. Design engineers kept up-to-date on the models and style changes by attending automobile shows and studying advertisements. Their designs changed when the larger counterparts changed. After items were conceived and models developed, the toys were analyzed for pricing. The more play features a model had, the more expensive it was.
Hubley is now a division of Gabriel Industries, Inc. of New York City and is still making die-cast metal vehicles." 1
1 Bland, Ann S. "Automotive Cast Iron Toys." Old And Sold Antiques Auction & Marketplace. http://www.oldandsold.com/articles/article184.shtml (accessed October 21, 2011)
Date Range
1922-1965
Year Range From
1922
Year Range To
1965
Date of Accumulation
1922-1965
Creator
Hubley Manufacturing Company
Storage Location
LancasterHistory, Lancaster, PA
Storage Room
Archives South
Storage Wall
Side 12
People
Bannan, William Henry
Booth, Herbert M.
Booth, John E.
Breneman, Joseph T., II
Brenner, Elmer
Burket, Laura Hartranft
Ervin, Lynn
Gardner, Joseph L.
Gardner, Mary Ellen
Gigi, William A.
Glackin, John
Harper, Forrest
Harrison, Edna
Hartman, Howard Henry
Hobday, Richard
Holden, John E.
Hostetter, Jacob Weaver
Houghton, Lee Roy
Johnson, Errel
Kane, George
Keller, Horace
Lefever, Doris M.
Linkletter, Art
Long, Philip Adam
Murray, Kermit
Murray, Ralph
Nauman, Samuel William
Phenegar, Frank
Schick, Leland W.
Shelley, Loretta B.
Singer, Victor Rutter
Souders, Elmer Lloyd
Spangler, Eugene M.
Stauffer, Howard E.
Watson, John Herman
Weaver, Ben
Work, Clarence
Subjects
Hubley Manufacturing Company
Toys
Manufacturing industries
Art metal-work
Search Terms
Art metal-work
Business records
Catalogs
Employees
Hubley Manufacturing Company
Manufacturing industries
Newsletters
Price lists
Toys
Finding aids
Manuscript groups
Extent
2 boxes, 42 folders, 75 cubic ft.
Object Name
Archive
Language
English
Object ID
MG0565
Location of Originals
LancasterHistory, Lancaster, Pennsylvania (Lancaster, Pa.)
Related Item Notes
MG-565 Hubley Manufacturing Company Catalogs and Newsletters
Access Conditions / Restrictions
No restrictions.
Copyright
Collection may not be photocopied. Please direct questions to Research Center Staff at research@lancasterhistory.org.
Permission for reproduction and/or publication must be obtained in writing from LancasterHistory.
Credit
Courtesy of LancasterHistory, Lancaster, Pennsylvania.
Other Numbers
MG-565
Other Number
MG-565
Classification
MG0565
Description Level
Fonds
Documents
Less detail