Popular Christmas Toys Since 1900: A Century Of Must-Haves

By early December 2025, the National Retail Federation was already projecting a $989 billion holiday season in the United States, with toys still the second-largest gift category behind gift cards. That fits a pattern the Farmers’ Almanac has watched roll around every year since the early 1900s. One toy owns the headlines, parents queue up for it, and by Groundhog Day it is under the bed. A few, though, refuse to leave. This is the century-long list of what American families actually bought, decade by decade, with the folklore, the fads, and the two or three that never went out of style.

The pattern is not new. Even the earliest United States Toy Fair records, held at the American International Toy Fair (running annually in New York City since 1903 according to The Toy Association), show wholesale buyers picking a “hit of the season” every year. What follows is the Almanac’s decade-by-decade recap, updated for 2025.

The 1900s: Teddy Bears, Kewpies, And The First Toy Fair

The decade set the template. Chalk-drawn hopscotch grids showed up on every sidewalk. Handheld 3D viewers, sold as stereoscopes, put photograph pairs into the parlor. Rose O’Neill’s Kewpie doll made its magazine debut in 1909. Ping pong crossed the Atlantic under the trade name “Whiff-Whaff.” Raggedy Ann and the first Teddy bears anchored the sentimental end of the gift table. The Teddy bear itself was born from a political cartoon by Clifford Berryman in the Washington Post, November 16, 1902, after Theodore Roosevelt refused to shoot a tethered black bear on a Mississippi hunt. Morris and Rose Michtom of Brooklyn stitched the first commercial Teddy bear in 1903 and asked the President’s permission to use his name. He said yes.

The 1910s: Tinker Toys, Ouija Boards, Erector Sets

Tinker Toys, invented by Charles Pajeau in 1914 in Evanston, Illinois, launched the era of the buildable classic. A.C. Gilbert’s Erector Set had arrived in 1913, sold with the tag line “for boys 8 to 80.” Parker Brothers’ Ouija board, patented in 1891 and marketed hard through the 1910s, moved from parlor curiosity to Christmas mainstay. Raggedy Ann dolls, introduced by Johnny Gruelle in 1915, kept the rag-doll tradition alive.

The 1920s: Crossword Puzzles, Mah-Jongg, Electric Trains

The Roaring Twenties came with a paper craze. The first crossword puzzle book, published by Simon and Schuster in April 1924, sold out its 3,600-copy run in three days and reprinted twice by Christmas. Mah-jongg tiles arrived from China with Joseph Babcock’s imported set, “The Red Book of Rules,” setting the parlor. Electric model trains from Lionel and American Flyer took over the space around the tree. Crayola Crayons, born in 1903, hit their first big Christmas year. The Duncan Yo-Yo hit shelves in 1929.

The 1930s: Mickey Mouse, Pinball, Shirley Temple Dolls

Depression-era Christmases leaned on cheap paper and character licensing. Mickey Mouse merchandise, licensed by Kay Kamen for Walt Disney starting in 1932, kept the studio afloat. Coin-operated pinball machines went into every drugstore. Ideal Toy Company’s Shirley Temple doll, launched in 1934, sold 1.5 million units in its first three years. Monopoly, released nationally by Parker Brothers on November 5, 1935, became the biggest board-game hit of the decade.

The 1940s: Hummel Figurines, LEGO, LP Records, Magic 8-Ball

Franz Goebel’s Hummel figurines arrived from Bavaria and became a collector standby on the American Christmas shelf. Danish carpenter Ole Kirk Christiansen produced the first plastic LEGO Automatic Binding Bricks in 1949. Columbia Records launched the 33 1/3 rpm long-playing record in 1948, and every teenage bedroom got one under the tree. Albert Carter and Abe Bookman’s Magic 8-Ball, launched by Alabe Crafts in 1946, gave every family Christmas a source of oracle-grade answers. Electric train sets stayed on the list.

The 1950s: Barbie, Frisbees, Hula Hoops, Play-Doh, Silly Putty

Suburbia and television turned every toy into a household name. Ruth Handler’s Barbie doll debuted at the American International Toy Fair on March 9, 1959. Wham-O launched the Pluto Platter as the Frisbee in 1957 and the hula hoop in 1958, selling 25 million hula hoops in the first four months, per company records. Pogo sticks, Silly Putty, and Slinkies rounded out the physical shelf. Mattel’s Chatty Cathy talked in 1959. Art Clokey’s Gumby and Pokey shipped as bendable figures. Play-Doh started as a wallpaper cleaner. Pez dispensers and Mr. Potato Head, the first toy advertised on television in 1952, closed out the decade.

The 1960s: GI Joe, Hot Wheels, Easy Bake, Etch-a-Sketch

Hasbro’s GI Joe launched February 9, 1964 and coined the term “action figure.” Barbie held her ground. Lava lamps arrived from Britain via Craven Walker’s Astro Lamp. Kenner’s Easy Bake Oven, launched November 1963, sold 500,000 units in year one. Troll dolls, Flatsy dolls, and Hot Wheels, launched by Mattel in 1968 with 16 die-cast cars, defined boyhood Christmas. Lite-Brite, Barrel of Monkeys, Operation, Rock ‘Em Sock ‘Em Robots (Marx Toys, 1964), Etch-a-Sketch (Ohio Art, 1960), Mrs. Beasley, Twister (1966), and Candy Land (Milton Bradley, 1949, hitting its peak years in the 60s) filled the rest of the tree.

The 1970s: Star Wars, Pet Rocks, Mood Rings, Nerf

Advertising exec Gary Dahl’s Pet Rock, sold in a straw-lined cardboard carrier with a 32-page manual, moved 1.5 million units at Christmas 1975. Mood rings, invented by Joshua Reynolds in 1975, blanketed junior high. Kenner’s Star Wars action figures, launched 1978, sold out even without the actual figures inside the box (the “Early Bird Certificate” mail-in offer, Christmas 1977, is a marketing case study). Barbie, Monopoly, Nerf balls (Parker Brothers, 1969), Duncan Yo-Yos, Kenner’s Stretch Armstrong (1976), Chrissy and Velvet dolls, Matchbox cars, and Milton Bradley’s Battleship (board version 1967, electronic 1977) held the rest of the shelf.

The 1980s: Cabbage Patch Kids, Rubik’s Cubes, Nintendo

Coleco’s Cabbage Patch Kids, licensed from Xavier Roberts and shipped for Christmas 1983, triggered mall stampedes documented by The New York Times on December 2, 1983. Erno Rubik’s Magic Cube, licensed to Ideal Toy Company as the Rubik’s Cube in 1980, sold over 100 million units by 1983. Chia Pets (“Ch-ch-ch-chia”), Hasbro’s Transformers (1984), Playmates’ Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (1988), Selchow and Righter’s Trivial Pursuit (Genus Edition, 1981), skateboards, Peyo’s Smurfs, Leslie Scott’s Jenga (1983), and Nintendo Entertainment System (launched in North America October 1985) closed out the decade.

The 1990s: Beanie Babies, Tickle Me Elmo, Furby

Ty Warner’s Beanie Babies rewrote collector economics after their 1993 launch. Tyco Preschool’s Tickle Me Elmo, unveiled at the American International Toy Fair February 1996, sold over 1 million units in six weeks and prompted the first widespread Christmas parking-lot incidents on record. Tiger Electronics’ Furby (1998), Barney the plush dinosaur, Bandai’s Power Rangers (1993), personal-computer games on CD-ROM, in-line skates (Rollerblade brand), Nickelodeon’s Rug Rats plush and figures, Pogs, and Mattel’s American Girl acquisition (1998) covered every age bracket.

The 2000s: iPods, Wii, Bratz, Razor Scooters

Consumer electronics moved under the tree. Apple’s iPod (October 2001), iPhone (June 2007), and iPad (April 2010) turned Christmas morning into a device launch. Razor Scooters, a 2000 holiday sellout, moved a claimed 5 million units in six months. Nintendo’s Wii, released November 2006, was that year’s runaway. Xbox 360 (2005), PlayStation 3 (2006), and RedOctane’s Guitar Hero (2005) covered the older kids. MGA Entertainment’s Bratz dolls (2001), Playskool’s Teddy Ruxpin re-release, LEGO’s licensed sets, Cepia’s Zhu Zhu Pets (Christmas 2009 sellout), Hasbro’s Baby Alive, and everything Finding Nemo carried the young end.

The 2010s: Frozen, Fingerlings, L.O.L. Surprise, Fortnite

The decade the reword table forgot. Disney’s Frozen (2013) and its Elsa dolls owned four straight Christmases. Hatchimals (Spin Master, 2016) sold out coast to coast. WowWee’s Fingerlings (2017) triggered the first influencer-driven toy craze. MGA Entertainment’s L.O.L. Surprise (2016) sold over 800 million units through 2019 per NPD Group. Fortnite skins and V-Bucks gift cards became stocking staples after 2018. Nintendo Switch launched March 2017.

The 2020s: Squishmallows, Pop Mart, Lego Botanicals, AR Figures

Kelly Toy’s Squishmallows, on shelves since 2017, hit their Christmas peak in 2021 and 2022 with over 100 million units sold by end of 2022. Chinese collectible-toy maker Pop Mart’s blind-box figures (Labubu, Molly) crossed over to American Christmas lists in 2024. Lego Botanicals and Lego Icons drove adult-buyer growth (“kidult” spending topped $9 billion in 2023 per Circana). Mattel’s Barbie enjoyed a post-movie 2023 sales bump. Bandai’s Pokemon TCG returned as a Christmas 2024 must-have. And retro is back: Vintage Nintendo, board games, and 1980s figures are in every wish list.

Never Went Out Of Style

A handful of toys have appeared on every decade’s list since introduction. LEGO (1949), Barbie (1959), Hot Wheels (1968), Monopoly (1935), Crayola Crayons (1903), and the Teddy bear itself (1903) all cross a century of Christmas mornings between them. Almanac editors track a simple rule: any toy that has appeared on the National Retail Federation or NPD / Circana top-selling holiday list in three separate decades is on its way to permanent status.

The Almanac Angle: Best Days To Wrap And Bake

The Almanac’s tradition is not to tell you what to buy. It is to tell you when to do the work. The Best Days Calendar lists specific December dates that suit baking cookies, wrapping gifts, entertaining friends, and starting a new family tradition. Small, folkloric, and folded into the same 200-year-old formula the Almanac still uses for weather and gardening.

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2020s? What’s In Store For The Decade Ahead

Watching Toy Fair 2026 and the NRF preview lists, the pattern for the rest of the decade looks like this: nostalgic collectibles, blind-box drops, adult LEGO sets, licensed movie tie-ins from the 2023 Barbie and Super Mario Bros. Movie universes, retro consoles, and screen-free crafts. Whatever wins, one law from 1903 still holds. The parents who queue up in November will find it under the bed by Groundhog Day. The Teddy bear, on the other hand, will still be there.

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Farmers' Almanac Staff

This article was published by the Staff at FarmersAlmanac.com. Any questions? Contact us at [email protected].

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