Alfred Carlton Gilbert
Alfred Carlton Gilbert (
February 13,
1884 –
January 24,
1961) was an
American inventor,
athlete,
toy-maker and
businessman. Born in
Salem, Oregon and died in
New Haven, Connecticut, Gilbert is best known as the inventor of the
Erector Set.
Gilbert financed his
education at
Yale University by working as a
magician, earning a degree in
sports medicine. An accomplished athlete, he broke the world record for consecutive
chin-ups (39) in
1900, distance record for running long dive in
1902, and height in the
pole vault. He won a gold medal in the
1908 Summer Olympics in
London in pole vaulting.
Choosing not to pursue a medical career, Gilbert co-founded a company manufacturing magic sets in
1909. This company would later become the
A. C. Gilbert Company. Gilbert invented the Erector set, a popular construction toy, in
1913. His inspiration was steel construction girders being used on the
New York, New Haven & Hartford Railroad. In
1918, with the United States embroiled in
World War I and the Council of National Defense considering a ban on toy production, Gilbert argued successfully against it. The press gave him the nickname "The man who saved
Christmas."
By
1935, he had sold more than 30 million of the sets. He also added
chemistry sets,
microscope sets, and other educational toys to his product line, accumulating more than 150 patents during his 50-year career.
Gilbert is also credited with originating the concept of providing
benefits for his employees, co-founded the
Toy Manufacturers of America organization and was its first president.
Frustrated that invention was an important part of American society but not taught in schools, in
1941 Gilbert opened the
Gilbert Hall of Science in
New York City, an early science and technology museum. It served the dual purpose of promoting interest in science and selling Gilbert's products.
Upon his retirement in
1954, Gilbert turned his company over to his son. The same year, he published his autobiography, titled
The Man Who Lives in Paradise. After his death in
1961, the family sold its remaining shares in the A. C. Gilbert Company. It went out of business six years later.
A museum in Gilbert's birthplace of Salem, Oregon is named in his honor. It opened in
1989. A biography titled
The Man Who Changed How Boys and Toys Were Made was published in
2002.
*
A. C. Gilbert's Discovery Village*
The A. C. Gilbert Heritage Society*
A. C. Glibert, The Man
