by We’d just been to the Miniature Museum of Greater St. Louis, so were hard pressed to justify visiting a similar museum so soon, but in truth, the miniatures are so fascinating, we almost can’t help ourselves. Plus the National Museum of Toys and Miniatures in Kansas City, Missouri also featured vintage toys, so we were sold.
The museum opened in 1982. It combined the collection of Mary Harris Francis (1927-2005) with Barbara Hall Marshall’s (1923-2021) fine miniature collection. The two avid collectors were lifelong friends, each trying to figure out what to do with their growing extensive collections.
Francis’ collection started in 1974 when she purchased her first antique dollhouse. At that time, she assured her husband she would “never need another”. Ha ha! Marshall’s collection started in the 1950s when she acquired her first miniature, a rocking chair. Interestingly, her professional career was in the in the art department at Hallmark, whose Visitor’s Center we had just visited.
The museum today boasts 33,000 square feet of exhibit space (up from its original 7,500 square feet), and has more than 93,000 objects in its growing collection. It’s one of the largest fine miniature collections in the world, as well as one of nation’s largest toy collections, covering toys from the 18th century to the present.
It’s hard not to spend the entire visit with a smile on your face. It’s fun to see toys from your youth, and the miniatures can’t help but leave you with a sense of awe and wonder. This post features the toy side of the museum, with a separate post on the miniatures.
How many toys do you recognize?
The cover photo features: “Connect 4”, 1974, Milton Bradley; “Uno”, c. 1972, International Games; and “Battleship”, c. 1973, Milton Bradley. All of these were part of my youth, for sure! I was surprised how tiny Battleship looked, LOL.
There were three kinetic sculptures designed by Jeffrey Zachman for the museum in 2003. They were mesmerizing!
