Erie Diecast Toys

The Parker White Metal & Machine Co. was founded in 1906 by William Allen Parker, an inventive toolmaker who was a pioneer in the use of non-ferrous metal in steel dies under pressure. It was located in Erie, Pennsylvania, a city which had the largest concentration of toolmakers in the USA and called itself the tool-and-die capital of the world. By 1928, Parker used zinc and aluminum alloys to produce precision parts within 1/1000 of an inch, for various industrial and home uses, including toy parts.

Just after W.A. Parker's death in 1934, and coming out of the Depression era, a subsidiary plant called Erie Metal Specialties, Inc. was started. Under the advice of Fred C. Ziesenheim, production manager of the firm, this spinoff was to be dedicated exclusively to the manufacture of die-cast toys, to compete in a new but rapidly expanding toy market. Mr. Ziesenheim had vast experience, as he had worked before for the Girard Model works, another toy manufacturer which produced pressed steel toys in the 20's. Under his supervision, the new plant would employ 50 workers, and it started operating in early 1936.

The venture would not last long though, and after only three years, in 1939, the plant ceased production, and the personnel were recalled to the main factory. Reasons are not clear, but according to several sources, it seems there were patent clashes with another big toy manufacturer, the Dowst Brothers of Tootsietoys, which could not be overcome. So, after a brief but successful production period, only a limited number of toys were manufactured, and available until 1941, when stocks run out, and as World War II requirements limited all domestic production.

The Parker White Metal & Machine Co. was founded in 1906 by William Allen Parker, an inventive toolmaker who was a pioneer in the use of non-ferrous metal in steel dies under pressure. It was located in Erie, Pennsylvania, a city which had the largest concentration of toolmakers in the USA and called itself the tool-and-die capital of the world. By 1928, Parker used zinc and aluminum alloys to produce precision parts within 1/1000 of an inch, for various industrial and home uses, including toy parts.

Just after W.A. Parker's death in 1934, and coming out of the Depression era, a subsidiary plant called Erie Metal Specialties, Inc. was started. Under the advice of Fred C. Ziesenheim, production manager of the firm, this spinoff was to be dedicated exclusively to the manufacture of die-cast toys, to compete in a new but rapidly expanding toy market. Mr. Ziesenheim had vast experience, as he had worked before for the Girard Model works, another toy manufacturer which produced pressed steel toys in the 20's. Under his supervision, the new plant would employ 50 workers, and it started operating in early 1936.

The venture would not last long though, and after only three years, in 1939, the plant ceased production, and the personnel were recalled to the main factory. Reasons are not clear, but according to several sources, it seems there were patent clashes with another big toy manufacturer, the Dowst Brothers of Tootsietoys, which could not be overcome. So, after a brief but successful production period, only a limited number of toys were manufactured, and available until 1941, when stocks run out, and as World War II requirements limited all domestic production.

Mr. Ziesenheim himself selected the toy prototypes, drew them to scale, designed the dies and supervised the tooling and casting. Once out of the furnace, the toys were spray-painted in racks, kiln-dried and then assembled.

As far as can be ascertained, no catalogs were issued, and the toys had no know numbering system. The toys were promoted through specialized magazines, such as 'Playthings', and 'Toys and Bicycles', and in department store catalogs. It is possible that the line of toys may have appeared at some point on the general hardware inventory of the main metal casting plant.

Identification

The toys can be identified by the embossed names of "PARKER", "ERIE", "USA", and the model's name under the casting for the vehicles. No numbers were cast, except the name of the airplane manufacturer under the wings. The smaller vehicles may not have identification. The aircraft have stamped or embossed spurious numbers on the wings.