Tonka Corporation Chronology Page 1
| 1883 - 1949 | |
|---|---|
| 1883 | George S. Parker publishes his first game, Banking, in Salem, Massachusetts. |
| 1888 | George's brother, Charles, joins the company forming Parker Brothers. The Salem manufacturing plant opens. |
| 1900 | Parker Brothers opens a New York City office and showroom in the Flat Iron Building at Fifth and Broadway (moves to 200 Fifth Avenue in 1930). |
| 1901 | Parker Brothers introduces Ping Pong® game. |
| 1904 | Parker Brothers introduces Pit® card game. |
| 1906 | Parker Brothers introduces Rook® card game. |
| 1923 | Parker Brothers introduces Mah Jongg game creating a nationwide craze. |
| 1933 | Charles B. Darrow of Philadelphia introduces Monopoly® board game. |
| 1934 | Parker Brothers introduces the Sorry® board game. |
| 1935 | Parker Brothers purchases the rights to the Monopoly® board game. |
| 1946 | The forerunner of Tonka, Mound Metalcraft Inc., is founded by Lynn E. Baker, Avery F. Crounse and Alvin F. Tesch in Mound, Minnesota, on the shores of Lake Minnetonka. (In Sioux, the word Tonka means "great".) The date of incorporation in Minnesota of Tonka (then Mound Metalcraft Inc., is September 18, 1946. |
| 1947 | Kenner Products is formed in Cincinnati, Ohio, by the Steiner brothers, Al, Phil and Joe. The company is named after its original office location on Kenner Street. Tonka participates in its first New York Toy Fair. |
| 1949 | Tonka introduces its first steel dump truck, the first Tonka truck model Parker Brothers introduces the Clue® board game. Kenner Products' Bubble Rocket® sells over 1 million units. |