August 17, 2006
For Immediate Release
Contact: Susan Trien, 585-410-6359, strien@museumofplay.org

Major Toy Catalog Collection
Donated to Strong National Museum of Play®

ROCHESTER, New York—Strong National Museum of Play® has received a major catalog collection that, according to outside appraisers, “may be unique to the modern history of toys in the United States.” The Stephen and Diane Olin Toy Catalog Collection of approximately 8,000 catalogs, provides documentary evidence for every aspect of the toy trade industry from development and distribution through sales and consumption from 1960 to 2005.

The catalog collection spans nearly half a century and includes well-known and influential makers of toys, dolls, and games such as Hasbro, Ideal, Kenner, Mattel, Milton-Bradley, and Parker Brothers, as well as hundreds of smaller toy firms that did not survive corporate consolidations and mass-market retailing but whose toys nonetheless touched thousands of children’s lives.

The collection also includes catalogs representing playground equipment, swimming pools, and other large-scale recreational artifacts related to the broad dimension of play; and promotional materials including clip art, videos, display toys and signs, price lists, photographs, posters, and descriptions of advertising campaigns.

According to Strong National Museum of Play® president and CEO G. Rollie Adams, “This extensive collection of material is a lens for examining the role of play in American culture. The depth and range of the collection will help scholars critically evaluate the commercial component of play and how it both reflects our culture, and in turn, shapes our children and our society.”

“Given the scope of our toy catalog collection and the national stature of Strong in the field of toys and play, we couldn’t think of a better place than Strong for housing our collection,” said Stephen Olin. “We are delighted that our collection will provide a valuable tool for researchers interested in the history of toys and play.”

Beginning in the late 1960s, Stephen Olin worked as a distributor of toys, particularly to small department stores and discount chains throughout the Northeast.
Over the years, he maintained files of catalogs, price lists, promotional materials, and correspondence related to his business and its suppliers. Upon his retirement, Olin and his wife Diane started Playthings Past (www.playthingspast.com), a specialty toy and game business launched from their Connecticut home. The business has kept the Olins in contact with numerous toy manufacturers and extended the collection of toy catalogs to the present. In addition, the Olins are avid collectors of antique toys, and their interest in toys and toy history has led to their saving a comprehensive range of trade catalogs and related ephemera.

Strong National Museum of Play® in Rochester, New York is the only museum in the world devoted to the study of play as it illuminates American culture. The museum houses the world’s largest collection of toys, dolls, and play-related artifacts and is home to the National Toy Hall of Fame®. An expansion this past July nearly doubled the museum’s size to 282,000 square feet, including an expanded and enhanced National Toy Hall of Fame®, a major exhibit on the importance of play, a 12,000-square- foot Reading Adventureland exhibit, and Upstate New York’s first and only year-round, live indoor butterfly garden. A representative display of the Olin collection is currently on view at Strong National Museum of Play®.

Strong National Museum of Play®, located in downtown Rochester, New York, is the only museum in the world devoted to the study of play as it illuminates American popular culture.
Admission Fees
General Admission (does not include Dancing Wings Butterfly Garden™):
Adults $9.00; Seniors $8.00; Children (2–17) $7.00; Children younger than two free; Strong members free.
Admission to Dancing Wings Butterfly Garden™:
General Admission fee plus $3.00 per person for members and nonmembers; Children younger than two free.
Due to limited capacity, entry to Dancing Wings Butterfly Garden™ is by timed tickets only. Advance purchase is recommended. Please call 585-263-2700 to purchase timed tickets.