Sports & Leisure - Overview
The nation's passion for sports is obvious every day—at NASCAR races, kiddie soccer matches, and countless other contests. From a handball used by Abraham Lincoln to Chris Evert's tennis racket to a baseball signed by Jackie Robinson, the roughly 6.000 objects in the Museum's sports collections bear witness to the vital place of sports in the nation's history. Paper sports objects in the collections, such as souvenir programs and baseball cards, number in the hundreds of thousands.
Leisure collections encompass a different range of objects, including camping vehicles and gear, video games, playing cards, sportswear, exercise equipment, and Currier and Ives prints of fishing, hunting, and horseracing. Some 4,000 toys dating from the colonial period to the present are a special strength of the collections.
"Sports & Leisure - Overview" showing 290 items.
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Duncan Tournament Yo-Yo
- Description (Brief)
- This wooden yo-yo was made by Duncan Toys Company during the 1930s-1940s. It is black with a printed gold label and black lettering. Duncan “Big G” Genuine yo-yos such as this were required for official Duncan contests in the early 1930s.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- Date made
- 1930s-1940s
- maker
- Duncan
- ID Number
- 2002.0246.13
- accession number
- 2002.0246
- catalog number
- 2002.0246.13
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center
Duncan Rainbo Yo-Yo
- Description (Brief)
- This wooden yo-yo was made by the Duncan Toys Company in the 1940s. It has plain red and yellow halves advertising Rainbo brand bread. Yo-Yos were often used as advertising tools throughout the 20th century.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- Date made
- 1940s
- maker
- Duncan
- ID Number
- 2002.0246.14
- accession number
- 2002.0246
- catalog number
- 2002.0246.14
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center
Duncan Litening Yo-Yo
- Description (Brief)
- This wooden yo-yo was made by the Duncan Toys company from 1956-1959. The overall crackle design was created through a double-coat painting process. The sticker reads “Duncan ‘Litening’ Yo-Yo Top”. This was one of the first yo-yos to be packaged and sold upon a blister card.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- Date made
- 1950s
- maker
- Duncan
- ID Number
- 2002.0246.15
- accession number
- 2002.0246
- catalog number
- 2002.0246.15
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center
Goody Filipino Twirler
- Description (Brief)
- This wooden yo-yo was made by the Goody Manufacturing Company in the 1950s-1960s. Goody was a main competitor of the Duncan Toys Co. who had trademarked term “yo-yo.” Instead, Goody called their products “Filipino Twirlers,” in reference to the toys' presumed Filipino origins.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- Date made
- 1950s-1960s
- maker
- Goody
- ID Number
- 2002.0246.16
- accession number
- 2002.0246
- catalog number
- 2002.0246.16
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center
Duncan Genuine Yo-Yo
- Description (Brief)
- This wooden yo-yo was made by the Duncan Toys Company in the 1930s. It has a green design with a broad red stripe. The seal reads “Genuine Duncan Yo-Yo, Reg. US Pat.” This was an early version of the Duncan Genuine Yo-Yo, produced soon after Donald Duncan bought the trademark term “yo-yo” from inventor Pedro Flores. This yo-yo's seal is reminiscent of the one used by Flores.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- Date made
- 1930s
- maker
- Duncan
- ID Number
- 2002.0246.17
- accession number
- 2002.0246
- catalog number
- 2002.0246.17
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center
Cheerio Practice Yo-Yo
- Description (Brief)
- This type of wooden Cheerio brand yo-yo was made by Wilfred Schlee during the 1950s and 1960s in Ontario, Canada. It has flat sides and a pale green and white design. There is a gold, red and black foil sticker on one side reading “Tested and Approved for Practice, Tournament Practice Cheerio, Return Top 25, By Official Worlds Champions.” Cheerio was the best selling yo-yo brand in Canada and England during the 1930s, and became one of the Duncan Toy Company's main U.S. competitors after World War II.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- maker
- Cheerio
- ID Number
- 2002.0246.18
- accession number
- 2002.0246
- catalog number
- 2002.0246.18
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center
BC "Smithsonian" Yo-Yo
- Description (Brief)
- This wooden yo-yo was made by BC in 1995. It has a laminated, rainbow wood design and features the Smithsonian Institution's sun logo. The BC yo-yo line was produced by “Whats Next Manufacturing Inc.”
- Location
- Currently not on view
- Date made
- 1995
- maker
- B.C. Yo-Yos
- ID Number
- 2002.0246.19
- accession number
- 2002.0246
- catalog number
- 2002.0246.19
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center
Duncan El Toro Yo-Yo
- Description (Brief)
- This blue plastic yo-yo was made by the Duncan Toys Company in the 1950s. Clear plastic covers on its rounded sides reveal red, white and black designs featuring graphics of charging bulls. There are loose pieces inside the yo-yo which make a slight noise when spun. The sides read “Genuine Duncan Yo-Yo, El Toro.”
- Location
- Currently not on view
- Date made
- 1950s
- maker
- Duncan
- ID Number
- 2002.0246.20
- accession number
- 2002.0246
- catalog number
- 2002.0246.20
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center
Duncan Whistling Yo-Yo Prototype
- Description (Brief)
- This developmental prototype for a whistling yo-yo was made by the Duncan Toys Company. It is made of stained wood with slotted pink and white plastic center pieces (diaphragms) attached to each half. There are eight small air holes on each side that produce a whistling sound when spun. Duncan’s previous whistling yo-yos were metal and manufactured by the Cayo Manufacturing Company. This example is likely an attempt by Duncan to self-produce a wooden whistler.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- maker
- Duncan
- ID Number
- 2002.0246.21
- accession number
- 2002.0246
- catalog number
- 2002.0246.21
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center
Duncan Jeweled Yo-Yo
- Description (Brief)
- This type of wooden one-piece yo-yo was produced by the Duncan Toys Company from 1953 through the 1960s. It is white with four rhinestones embedded in each half. The stamped seal reads “Duncan Jeweled Tournament Yo-Yo, Tops.” The Duncan Jeweled was one of the best-selling yo-yos after World War II, inspiring other brands to produce their own jeweled examples.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- maker
- Duncan
- ID Number
- 2002.0246.22
- accession number
- 2002.0246
- catalog number
- 2002.0246.22
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center
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