How Alfred C. Gilbert Saved Christmas

America's Savior of Christmas

 By James Patton

The Council of National Defense was formed on 24 August 1916 by President Woodrow Wilson under powers granted to the President in the National Defense Act of 1916 (PL 64-85 39 Stat. 166). Among the Council’s regulatory powers was the authority to tell American industry what they could and couldn’t make. 

During the summer of 1918, the Council’s staff proposed a rule that would limit the production of Christmas gifts, especially toys. The objective was twofold: first, to redirect the materials and the industrial capacity towards military requirements, and second, to reinforce in the civilian population a spirit of sacrifice (‘doing their bit’). 

The Council staff had not reckoned with push-back. Enter Alfred C. Gilbert (1884 –1961), an Oregon-born  Yale medical graduate and athlete who shared a Gold Medal in the Pole Vault at the 1908 Olympics in London. He was also an amateur magician, and in 1907 he started a company that sold the “Mysto Magic Exhibition” sets. Building on  this success, in 1913 he added the “Erector Set” to his line, which was a best-seller for nearly fifty years. My brother and I each had one. 

Going back to 1918, Gilbert decided to make the Council of National Defense change its mind about banning toys. Representing the Toy Manufacturers of America, the trade association he had formed in 1915, he travelled to Washington, and after waiting for hours, he was  given fifteen minutes to convince them not to effectively cancel Christmas for the nation’s children.

America's Council of National Defense

Facing him across the table were six very powerful men: the Secretary of War Newton D. Baker (1871-1937), the Secretary of the Navy Josephus Daniels (1862-1948), the Secretary of the Interior Franklin K. Lane (1864-1921), the Secretary of Agriculture David F. Houston (1866-1940), the Secretary of Commerce William C. Redfield (1858-1932) and the Secretary of Labor William B. Wilson (1862-1934). Also present was the non-voting Director, Walter C.  Gifford (1885-1966), who was on loan from Western Electric.

“The greatest influences in the life of a boy are his toys,” Gilbert began. “Yet through the toys American manufacturers are turning out, he gets both fun and an education. The American boy is a genuine boy and wants genuine toys."

He had brought along a BB gun, made by Daisy Manufacturing of Plymouth, Michigan (Gilbert never manufactured these), to show the Council how a child wielding a non-lethal weapon could become a skilled marksman, a valuable asset to a nation that relied on citizen-soldiers. He insisted that his construction toys—like the Erector Set—fostered creative thinking (consider what one can make today with LEGOs). 

He told these men that toys provided a valuable interlude from the ever-present sacrifices of the war. Given appropriate play objects, a boy’s life could be directed toward “construction, not destruction,” Gilbert said.

Then Gilbert proceeded to lay out some more toys that he had brought along for the Council to examine. Navy  Secretary Daniels was enamored with a toy submarine, marveling at the details. He asked Gilbert where he could get one; Gilbert said that it could be bought anywhere in the country. Some of them examined children’s books; yet another guided a wind-up toy locomotive as it putt-putted around the table. Gilbert spotted the fleeting moment where these hard-hitting middle-aged men became little boys again. The decision didn’t come immediately, but Gilbert left Washington knowing that the toys had won. And there was no toy embargo in 1918.

A prolific innovator, Gilbert eventually held over 150 patents. The “Fun with Chemistry” sets, the “Microscope and Lab Set” and many other ‘educational’ products were also run-away best-sellers. By far his most controversial product was the ”U-238 Atomic Energy Laboratory”, which included  radioactive ore samples.  My father, who had worked with radioactive materials during WWII, refused to let me get one. I did get the ”Electrical Engineering Set”, which was the basis for the first of my unlicensed radio transmitters. 

From 1938 until 1966 the Gilbert company produced the classic ‘American Flyer’ series of two-rail toy trains, using both AC and DC and mostly in S-Gauge (1:64). These were made with exquisite detail - the replica steam locomotives even produced ‘glowing smoke’, ‘chugged’ and could even whistle. 

Sadly, in 1961 all of the magic died with Gilbert. His son succeeded him but survived only a year. Gilbert’s daughters then sold the business, and without inspired management, it had to be liquidated in 1967. American Flyer trains were bought by Gilbert’s erstwhile competitor, the legendary Lionel Corp., and the British firm Meccano bought the trademark “Erector”, which they hold to this day. 

Gilbert has been remembered in several ways. The most significant are: an internet-based group called the A.C. Gilbert Heritage Society,  a museum in Salem Oregon called Gilbert’s Discovery Village and a made-for-TV movie, called The Man Who Saved Christmas, which was a forgettable production that was filmed in Toronto (to get the Canadian tax credits) and was quite slippery on the facts. It was aired here on CBS at Christmas time in 2002.