Editor’s note: This is another column in Bill Boyd’s new series, “The Way It Was,” about growing up in Marysville. Bill continues to work with the Union County Historical Society to obtain information for his stories. With Marysville and Union County celebrating Bicentennial anniversaries in 2019 and 2020, respectively, these articles help depict what life was like in those early years.
–––
It was a Saturday in December of 1938, and my parents took my sisters and me to Columbus to do a little Christmas shopping at Lazarus Department Store. While we were there, I could sit on Santa’s lap and tell him what I wanted for Christmas.
We parked our 1937 Ford in a gravel parking lot at the corner of Town and Front Streets. That’s where we always parked. Then we went directly into the store. As soon as we were inside, my sisters went off by themselves to shop, and my parents took me to see Santa. I sat on his lap, and I told him everything I wanted. I didn’t leave anything out.
Then my dad went off to do a little shopping on his own, and my mother took me to the Lazarus toy department. It was really something special. It took up all of the display space on the sixth floor of the store. A kid could go in there and play all day long, and never pick up the same toy twice.
There was every kind of toy you could think of – games, cars and trucks, dolls, wagons and scooters. There were all kinds of sports things, and several electric trains. There were tricycles, bicycles and dollhouses. I don’t think there was any bigger toy department in the country.
Out of all the toys I saw that day, there was one toy that really fascinated me. My mother told me it was an “Erector Set.” It took up a large section of the toy department, and there was a man there demonstrating all the things you could build with it. It was made of lightweight steel pieces that could be connected together with small bolts and nuts.
I could see a lot of things he had built – bridges and buildings and windmills – and we watched him as he was building a large Ferris wheel. I was fascinated buy those erector sets. Wouldn’t it be great to build all those things? They even had a small screwdriver and wrench to do the work. Or I could use my dad’s tools.
But I had a problem. You see, I had already told Santa what I wanted for Christmas, but that was before I ever saw those Erector Sets. I talked to my
parents about that, and they said they would write a letter to Santa to explain what I had left out.
On Christmas morning, I dashed down the stairs and went right to our Christmas tree. I searched and searched, but there was no Erector Set. My parents saw that I looked disappointed, so they showed me something else under the tree. They said I could build all kinds of things with it. It was called a “Tinkertoy Set.”
I opened the box, which was marked “Beginner’s Kit,” and looked inside. There were no shiny metal parts and no nuts and bolts. There were just some wooden sticks, of different lengths. Then there were some little wooden spools with holes in them. My dad said I could slip the ends of the sticks into those holes, and it would allow me to build all of the things that I could build with an Erector Set.
My dad tried to get me enthused about the Tinkertoy Set, but there was no way that was going to happen. It was as if I had asked Santa for a pony, and he gave me a hamster instead. I was really disappointed.
I tried to use the Tinkertoys to build something, but the wooden sticks were so light in weight, the whole thing tipped over. There was no way I was going to have much fun with it. It just sat unused in my room.
The following Christmas I once again asked for an Erector Set. And once again, I got a Tinkertoy Set. It was a much larger kit, so I could build a lot more things. I think my parents thought that would make it more fun for me, but it didn’t. Once again, it just sat unused in my room.
So I never did get an Erector Set, and that bothered me for years. Then many years later, in the late ‘60s and early ‘70s, our son Dave was at the perfect age to enjoy an Erector Set, so I had my heart set on getting him one for Christmas. I wanted him to have fun playing with it, like I was never able to do. I could sit on the floor and play with it with him. Yes, I would get him a set for Christmas.
But that never happened. He didn’t give a hoot about Erector Sets. He wanted a football, ice skates and a baseball glove. So I never got a chance to build anything with an Erector Set. I suppose I could ask for one next Christmas, but I would probably get another one of those Tinkertoy Sets. I don’t want to go through that again.
Those wishing to contact Bill Boyd can e-mail him at bill@davidwboyd.com