Shop for tonka excavator toy you will love online at Target. Free shipping and save 5 every day with your Target REDcard. The year was 1964. The place was Toy Fair in New York City where Tonka Toys introduced the Mighty Tonka series of trucks that would become the standard for Tonka. Tonka Construction Vehicles Graders, Dump trucks, State Hiway, etc. Please note All items are now available in peel and stick ONLY unless otherwise noted in the. ToysRUs offers Tonka trucks, the brand that helps to create wonderful childhood memories. Shop Tonka fire trucks, dump trucks, metal trucks, and more. A Thumbnail Look At Tonka History Streater. A Thumbnail Look At Tonka History Streater Mound Metalcraft. Streater Industries, prior to WWII, was in the lumber business. During the war, they successfully bid on a contract to supply the United States government with wood ammunition boxes. The scrap generated was turned into kids toys. In an email I received from R. L. Dick Streater, He recalls that E. C. Edward Streater, then President of Streater Industries, showed samples of a wagon and scooter to a buyer at Firestone and was given an order for several thousand. Tonka Construction 1' title='Tonka Construction 1' />The toy sales helped keep Streater Industries viable during the war. After the war, Streater Industries continued to grow their wooden toy line, an example being the all wood steam shovel, the predecessor to the all steel, Streater Industries, model 1. WWII ended in May 1. For the entrepreneur, it was time to invest in the future. Consumer demand for most household staples, would be on the rise. From automobiles to zebra skin coats, it was time for the players to step up. It was early in 1. Edward Ed Streater was anxious to show off his companies newest steel toys. He made arrangements to go to New York City in 1. American Toy Fair. Toy Fair turned out to be a bust as Ed came home disenchanted by the cool reception his steel toys received. On the heels of the less than enthusiastic demand for his Steam Shovel and Crane Clam, the tooling was put into storage. It didnt stay out of sight for very long. Mound Metalcraft Incorporated was formed on September 1. Lynn Baker, Alvin Tesch and Avery Crounse. The business model for their new company was to manufacture closet accessories tie racks and lawn and garden implements rakes, hoes, shovels and the like. They also wanted to offer their steel stamping capabilities to several small companies in the area around Mound. Lynn Baker was actively looking for a space to set up their manufacturing company. Fate was about to step in. Read a 1. 95. 3 interview with Lynn Baker. During lunch with Edward Streater, Lynn Baker learned that Streaters Mound plant was for sale. For 7. 50. 0, a deal was struck and Mound Metalcraft purchased what had been, prior to one of Streaters manufacturing plants, a three story school building. All three floors were utilized. A portion of the top floor was occupied by manufacturing assembly and the remainder was occupied by company staff and administration. The first floor was home to sub assembly and the tool room. Tonka Construction 1' title='Tonka Construction 1' />The metal stamping presses and paint department were located in the basement. During the course of negotiations for the purchase of Streaters Mound plant, Mound Metalcraft became aware of the new steel toys Ed had designed and after much due diligence, offered to purchase the tooling. A deal was done. The opportunity to manufacture steel toys, as envisioned by Edward C. Streater, son of L. E. Streater would soon be in the hands of Mound Metalcraft. The tooling for two pressed steel toys was soon purchased from Streater Industries that would become Tonkas model 1. Steam Shovel and 1. Crane Clam. The tooling for both the Steam Shovel and Crane Clam was modifiedrevised to meet Mound Metalcrafts requirements. To learn more about Streater Industries and their steel steam shovel CLICK HERE. Mound Metalcraft and the Tonka Toys brand name was on the map. Following the introduction of the Steam Shovel in 1. Crane Clam in 1. Tonka brand as a player in the growing pressed steel toy industry. If the Tonka brand wanted to compete with the likes of Buddy L, Marx, Nylint, Structo, Wyandotte and others, it had to diversify the models being offered. To that end, Dump trucks, Wreckers, Semis, and Box Vans all made their initial appearance prior to 1. In mid 1. 95. 5, Mound Metalcraft moved into a new manufacturing facility that was required to handle their ever increasing product line and an insatiable appetite by consumers for Tonka trucks. In very short order, a 5. Tonka Toys indeed was on the grow. Read a 1. 95. 6 article that was featured in TOYS and NOVELTIES magazine. Although the Tonka Toys name appeared on all products manufactured by Mound Metalcraft from 1. Mound Metalcraft, Inc. Tonka Toys, Inc. until January 3, 1. The future really looked bright and for the next 2. Tonka Toys continued to grow. The road was not always smooth. There were a few bumps along the way management changes, recessions and the like. But Tonka Toys persevered. Fast forward to 1. Remember, this is a brief history. In a major blow to Tonkas Minnesota workforce, steel truck manufacturing began to move from Mound to El Paso, Texas in 1. In 1. 99. 1, Tonka Toys was purchased by Hasbro Incorporated, the second largest toy company in the U. S. A. In 1. 99. 8, still under the watchful eye of Hasbro, steel truck manufacturing moved completely out of the United States to locations in mainland China. In todays global manufacturing environment, Made in the U. S. A. tends to take a backseat if it affects the bottom line. Fast forward one more time to May 1. The Tonka brand is still part of the Hasbro family and is still being manufactured in China. The once mighty Tonka brand has been diluted with plastic trucks with funky faces, secured in bubble packs and hung on a hook at toy retailers across the U. S. A. The old school is long gone. The factory in Mound looks much the same as it did when the doors closed in 1. The factory in El Paso, to include administrative offices, plastic blow and injection molding presses, steel stamping presses, steel parts sub assembly, four paint lines, and multiple final assembly and packaging lines, raw steel, bulk plastic and in process parts storage, was purchased by El Paso Community College for administrative offices. The property where the finished goods were warehoused and distributed, with over 5. Tonka Toys is Americana. Realistic steel trucks, Tonka tough, built to last. Non 12 Step Recovery Programs California. Toy trucks to be handed down from one generation to the next. Solid steel construction has, over the years, given way to more plastic content. In fact many Tonka trucks manufactured today are all plastic. If auction sites such as e. Bay are any indication, vintage Tonka trucks are still very popular. The test of a great innovation is longevity. Early and many not so early Tonka trucks continue to be a solid favorite with kids from 3 to 9. Early Tonka History, One Mans Perspective. An Interview with Gordon BatdorfAdded Nov. Gordon Batdorf was hired in 1. Avery Crounse to fill a bookkeeper position at Mound Metalcraft. He resigned his position as Chief of Operations, Tonka Toys, in 1. The interview offers a first person look into Tonka culture that began in Tonkas formative years and some would argue, was part of Tonkas DNA when Tonka ceased manufacturing in the U. S. A. in 1. 99. 7. The interview with Batdorf is a must read. Tonka Corporation ChronologyAdded Oct. Many folks dont know that Tonka, Kenner and Parker Brothers were once family. Tonka wanted to grow and hatched a plan to bring the owners of Easy Bake Oven and Monopoly into the family. Unfortunately, the plan to grow Tonka had the same effect as that pesky iceberg had on the Titanic. The plan to grow Tonka looked solid on paper, but Tonkas iceberg turned out to be two disastrous years of toy sales and the huge debt incurred for the money borrowed to finance the purchase of Kenner and Parker Brothers. The Tonka Corporation Chronology will walk you down the paths each company followed. I do not know who to credit for the chronology. The original appears to be an internal company document dated May 1. Now here is some pretty good news for all you Tonka truck fans. Tonka trucks was inducted into the National. Toy Hall of Fame, located within the confines of the Strong National Museum of Play in Rochester, New York. March 2. 8, 2. 00. Free Dreambox 500S Image Download Free Software 2017'>Free Dreambox 500S Image Download Free Software 2017. The National Toy. Hall of Fame recognizes toys that have achieved longevity and national significance in the world of play and imagination. Tonka trucks proudly joins. Silly Putty, Slinky, Mr.