Brand record
Barclay
Barclay Manufacturing Company was a New Jersey maker of painted hollowcast toy soldiers and diecast vehicles. It began offering toy soldiers in the 1920s, distributing them through five-and-dime stores, where they became known as dimestore soldiers. The company’s factory on Barclay Street in Hoboken produced as many as 500,000 figures a week. Production paused during the Second World War and resumed afterward, but ended by the 1970s as plastic soldiers took more of the toy market. In the 1990s, new owners of the Barclay trademark resumed production of solid metal reproductions for collectors.
- Founded
- 1922
- Final year
- 1971
- Countries
- United States
- Locations
- New Jersey, United States
- Founders
- Leon Donze · Michael Levy
The story of Barclay
Barclay Manufacturing Company of New Jersey began offering painted hollowcast toy soldiers in the 1920s. Sold through five-and-dime stores, the figures became known as dimestore soldiers. The company also made diecast toy vehicles. Its factory on Barclay Street in Hoboken produced as many as 500,000 figures a week. A catalog history places the company’s start between 1922 and 1924, probably in 1924. From about 1934 through early 1942, Barclay was the country’s largest toy-soldier manufacturer.
Production stopped during the Second World War, then resumed with metal toys after the war. The company remained a significant toy-soldier maker, though its output was diminished. By the 1970s, it could no longer compete with manufacturers of plastic soldiers and ceased production. The catalog history dates the factory’s closure to 1971. In the 1990s, trademark rights were acquired and The Barclay Company resumed production of solid metal reproductions for collectors. This later production followed the original manufacturer’s cessation.
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