I started thinking about the history of toys and play, and how it has evolved over the centuries.  I saw the new digital Rubik’s cube and I chuckled.  Remember when the original Rubik’s cube made it’s debut?  Not only have our toys evolved, the entire concept of playtime has changed dramatically.  I started researching the history of toys;  my how things have changed!

Here is a snapshot of a detailed timeline from History.com

• 4000 B.C.  Babylonian board game resembling checkers or chess is played
• 3000 B.C Stone marbles are used in Egypt, glass marbles come later
• 1000 B.C. Kites appear in China…enter stone yo-yo’s in Greece.
• (Can you imagine kids today being entertained by a stone yo-yo??)
• 200 A.D.  Iron skates used in Scandinavia.
• 696 Playing cards used in Asia.

• 1759 Roller skates invented by Joseph Merlin.
• 1800’s Playgrounds appear in American cities. (No CedarWorks yet!)
• 1901 22 year-old Joshua Lionel Cowen creates first battery powered train engine.  Lionel Trains is born!
• 1902 Toy bears begin to be called “Teddy Bears” after President Theodore Roosevelt.  Teddy Bear mania sweeps the world!
• 1914 Tinker Toys invented by Charles Pajeau.
• 1949 Ole Christiansen, Danish toy maker, manufactures The Lego.
• 1952 Mr. Potato Head is born!
• 1959 The Barbie doll is introduced at the American Toy Fair in NYC by Elliot Handler, founder of Matel Toys.
• 1976 Atari comes alive!
• 1980 Magic Cube is renamed to Rubik’s Cube after its inventor Erno Rubik.
• 1983 Nintendo arrives in U.S. from Japan.
• 1997 The launch of eToys,  one of the most popular and fastest-growing cyber toy shops.
• 2000 Sony launches Playstation 2, 106 million units shipped by the end of 2006.
• 2006 Microsoft Xbox 360 emerges.  The video game industry represents around $13 billion in sales per year.

http://www.history.com/content/toys/timeline

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