Maker record
Girard
Girard Model Works was an American toy maker based in western Pennsylvania, founded by Frank E. Wood in 1919. It produced tin toys, banks, toy cash registers, model airplanes, steel automobiles and trucks, toy boats, roller skates and trains. Its Joy Line trains included spring-powered and electric locomotives, with early floor-running toys followed by trains designed for O gauge track. Girard began producing toys in 1924 in Albion and moved train production to Girard, Pennsylvania, in 1929. Louis Marx sold Girard products before purchasing Joy Line after the company entered receivership in 1934.
- Founded
- 1919
- Countries
- United States
- Locations
- Strasburg, Pennsylvania, United States
- Founders
- Frank E. Wood
The story of Girard
Girard Model Works was founded by Frank E. Wood in western Pennsylvania in 1919. Toy production began in 1924 in the Fox building on East Pearl Street in Albion. The company made tin toys, banks, toy cash registers, model airplanes, steel automobiles and trucks, toy boats and roller skates, as well as trains. In 1929, train production moved from Albion to Girard, Pennsylvania.
Girard's Joy Line began with inexpensive spring-powered trains intended to run on the floor. Later versions used heavier frames and couplers, flanged wheels and track-ready designs. Girard produced both clockwork and electric locomotives, including cast-iron and pressed-steel versions, and offered freight and passenger cars. Louis Marx acted as a sales agent for Girard in the late 1920s. After Girard entered receivership in 1934, Marx purchased Joy Line; the Girard plant continued making Marx-branded trains. Marx dropped the Joy Line name by 1935, while some of its designs and parts carried into later Marx production.