Kids’ Toys That Are Older Than You Think

Just because a toy your child plays with today is popular doesn’t mean that it always will be. Ideas for toys come and go so quickly that you might not have heard of some that have failed over the years. However, that’s not what we’re here to talk about today. Right now, we’re going to go over the kids’ toys that are older than you think. Some of these have withstood the test of time.

Ride-On Cars

This is probably the youngest toy on our list, but it’s still older than many realize, so we wanted to include it. Electric toy cars have taken the market by storm lately and have been a big deal since the early 2000s, but did you know that the original ones, Power Wheels, first came around in the ‘80s? It took a while for them to become more mainstream, but their hard work paid off in the long run.

This toy is even older if you take out the motor and add some petals or a hole for kids to put their legs through and ride. It’s interesting to see the history behind this toy and how it has developed over time.

Magic 8-Ball

One of the most ‘90s toys you could probably think of is the Magic 8-Ball. That’s not when it came out, though. It was first created in 1946 by Abe Bookman, who worked for Alabe Crafts at the time. It first became a part of pop culture through its use by the Three Stooges, and by the ‘50s, it was being produced commercially for kids of all ages.

Tonka Trucks

Another classic toy from our youth that is much older than many of us probably thought is Tonka Trucks. Tonka, which originally made tie racks, first made the Tonka Truck. Around the same time as the Magic 8-Ball, they started making little toy trucks out of metal as a side project. Who knew that would eventually become the most significant part of their business and how they’d become a household name for those with young children?

Paintball

As controversial as they might be at times, something like a paintball gun would always exist. However, paintball is a blast no matter your age. In fact, the idea of the paintball gun comes from something adults used to do in the early 1900s. They’d use wax bullets inside of real guns to partake in duels with each other.

It was still quite dangerous, though, and badly injured those who got hit. One report claimed that a person once lost a bit of skin that connects their thumb and forefinger while doing this. When compared to that, paintball doesn’t seem so bad now. 

The Yo-Yo

While the modern version was created in 1928, the oldest entry in our list of kids’ toys that are older than you think dates back to around 500 BC. This toy is the yo-yo. Historians are unsure if it originated from Greece, China, or the Philippines, but one thing’s for sure: this has to be one of the oldest toys still regularly used by kids today.