« Chugga Chugga, Woo Woooo! »
Wednesday, July 8, 2009 at 3:26PM 
No sense getting into the 60 year old debate about whether gender traits are genetic or instilled, but in my early childhood I remember no stigma attached to what toys we played with: we all had teddy bears, we were all cowboys, we all used Lincoln Logs, Tinker Toys and erector sets, but most girls didn’t get electric trains and boys didn’t get dolls (but that didn’t mean we didn’t sometimes play with them). As you can see here, as always, mom decided what little boys should wear.
Both of these photos were taken by parents, affluent European on the left (c. 1900), middle class American on the right (c. 1920); neither are masterpieces of photographic art. The earlier tin toy trains showed little concern for realism – as long as the engine had four wheels it could be rolled about; the later ones made some pass at authenticity by adding larger drive wheels and tacking on something that looked like a piston chest, but I doubt little boys cared. Now big boys pay big bucks for the ones that survived.
The accurate scale model electric trains to come were largely a marketing ploy to persuade dad to give what he never had to his sons. It worked – my first electric train came when I was barely old enough to set the heavy engine on the tracks properly, but I learned soon enough; lying on the floor watching it whiz along the tracks is an early memory. My son started early and grew up going to model rail club shows, wearing his engineer’s cap, striped OshKosh overalls and red bandana, standing on a chair to see the trains and operate the controls. Few boys today have any interest in trains.
Reader Comments (1)
This famous solo artist strikes a fashionable note when with her head-turning louis vuitton patchwork bag, for which she was rumored to have paid a tidy sum of $42,000. Hilary Duff: The classic louis vuitton bag is one of this young star's favorite bags, exuding a classic, versatile style. Cameron Diaz: For her frequent travels, this gorgeous starlet pulls along her rolling Louis vuitton bags Monogram Luggage.Denise Richards: Function and femininity are the hallmarks of this actress' pink lv , combining style and spottiness.