For more than a century, Chicago has shaped the way generations of children have played. From simple wooden construction sets and little red wagons to clever board games and talking toys, inventors have turned imagination into a successful industry. It was Chicagoans whose minds conceived of toys that influenced our culture and sparked nationwide toy collection crazes. Below are some of the toys and games that were born in Chicago and left an indelible mark on childhoods across generations around the world... Read More

Few toys have inspired the kind of obsession and devotion as the small but mighty Beanie Baby. What began as a line of stuffed animals from a suburban Chicago company became one of the biggest toy crazes of all time. Thanks to the marketing prowess of its inventor, the $5 plush toy with the scarlet heart tag became a cultural phenomenon and, for some enthusiastic collectors, an illusory investment... Read More

You know them, you love them, and you hate to step on them. Introduced by a Danish company in 1949, LEGO bricks have become one of the world’s most recognizable toys. But before LEGOs, a company called Elgo created a simple set of red and white plastic bricks in Chicago... Read More