I'd like to show you two little toy tool chests I have here at home that I'm just getting ready to sell. These were made for little boys in the 1920's and 1930's to get them interested in building things just like dad!
This tool chest is made by the Mason and Parker Manufacturing Company. Inside is a beautiful, nicely colored chromolithograph scene of three boys building an airplane. I can imagine how this sparked the imagination of young boys back in the days of "Lucky Lindy" and his historic flight across the Atlantic:
The tool chest includes some child-size tools. Over the years, other tools might have gotten mixed in with the original toy tools that came in the kit. I'm not completely sure what tools are original to my kit, and to make things more confusing, I have two kits....
Here's my second tool chest. The American Manufacturing Concern made this version in Jamestown, New York:
Some examples will show the boys working on an airplane on the interior graphic, like my first example, or a chicken coop, like my second example. You might also find one where a boy and his dad are building a boat. There might be more versions, too.
You might think charming play-sets such as these would be very valuable. Actually, these are quite common and sell at retail for about $75 to$100. Of course, condition of the interior graphic, the number of tools, and condition of the wood chest will affect the value of the set.
Mitzi
