Barclay Manufacturing Company
Barclay Manufacturing Company was an American maker of die-cast toy vehicles and hollowcast toy soldiers, best remembered for the inexpensive figures collectors call “dimestore soldiers.”
Last updated October 14, 2026
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Overview
Barclay Manufacturing Company was an American metal-toy producer associated with the mass-market toy trade of the 1920s through the early 1970s. Formed by Leon Donze and Michael Levy around 1922, the company took its name from Barclay Street in Hoboken, New Jersey. It was later based in North Bergen and, after the Second World War, in Union City, reflecting its long connection with northern New Jersey’s manufacturing and commercial corridor. Barclay became especially well known for inexpensive hollowcast toy soldiers sold through five-and-dime stores. Because individual figures were commonly affordable to children and widely distributed through retailers such as Woolworths, collectors later adopted the informal term “dimestore soldiers” for Barclay figures and similar products. The company’s soldiers changed with both military fashion and manufacturing economics. After Barclay acquired the Tommy Toy company in 1939, it also obtained the services and designs associated with sculptor Olive Kooken. Uniform details were updated from earlier closed collars and wrapped puttees to open collars, shirts and ties, and canvas leggings. Before the company’s temporary wartime closure in 1942, individual foot soldiers could be bought for five cents. Barclay’s product range also included small metal vehicles. Some early examples from the 1930s were slush-cast white-metal toys with stylized, sometimes Art Deco-inspired forms. The range included buses, tankers, sedans, coupes, military vehicles and trucks. One “Build and Paint Your Own Auto Set” combined several unpainted or lightly finished vehicles with paint, while other products were sold as finished toys. During and around the Second World War, the company produced military-themed vehicles including tanks, trucks with cannons and other brown-painted vehicles. The postwar period brought both product changes and cost pressures. Barclay’s soldier helmets were revised to resemble the M1 helmet, and around 1951 the company removed figure bases to reduce metal consumption. These base-less figures became known among collectors as “podfoot” soldiers because their feet ended in flattened, rounded forms. Price increases followed the rising cost of metal: individual soldiers that had sold for five cents eventually reached fifteen cents. In the 1960s, the figures became less common in traditional dime stores and were increasingly sold through hobby shops. Uniform colors also changed, including green-painted uniforms intended to represent the modern U.S. Army from 1964 onward. Barclay vehicles remained popular during the 1950s and 1960s. Many were only slightly more than an inch long, although the company also produced larger toys measuring several inches. Its cars were usually simple single-cast bodies without transparent windows or detailed interiors. Certain models included separately cast and painted metal drivers. Collectors recognize many Barclay vehicles by their distinctive pinched, flat axles protruding from the wheels, bright paint colors and compact proportions. Products included small Volkswagen Beetle models, sports and racing cars, generic trucks, car carriers with folding ramps and themed utility trucks carrying miniature wooden barrels. Around 1960, the company marketed “Bottle Series” miniatures in blister packages shaped like small bottles and marked “All American.” Barclay ceased trading in 1971. Its decline reflected the difficulty of competing with plastic toys, changing consumer tastes and the growing popularity of newer die-cast formats such as Mattel’s Hot Wheels. The historical Barclay company is therefore defunct, but its collector legacy continued. Trademark rights associated with the old firm were reacquired in the 1990s, and later production included solid-metal reproductions of Barclay and Manoil Manufacturing Company figures. These reproductions preserve the company’s designs and name in the vintage-toy market, although they should not be confused with the original company’s active manufacturing operations.
History
Barclay Manufacturing Company emerged in the United States during the expansion of inexpensive cast-metal toys. Leon Donze and Michael Levy formed the business around 1922, naming it after Barclay Street in Hoboken, New Jersey. The company subsequently operated in other northern New Jersey locations, including North Bergen and, after the Second World War, Union City. Its early business combined metal toy vehicles with toy soldiers. Some 1930s vehicles were produced in slush-cast white metal and displayed simplified or Art Deco-influenced styling. Products included buses, oil tankers, passenger cars, trucks and sets that allowed children to paint their own vehicles. Barclay also made military vehicles in the period surrounding the Second World War, including tanks and trucks fitted with cannons. The company’s most enduring category was the hollowcast toy soldier. In 1939, Barclay acquired Tommy Toy, another soldier manufacturer, along with the work of sculptor Olive Kooken. The acquisition broadened Barclay’s design resources and coincided with changes in the appearance of its figures. Uniforms were revised to reflect contemporary military clothing, including open collars, shirts and ties in place of earlier closed collars, as well as canvas leggings instead of wrapped puttees. Prior to a temporary closure in 1942, individual foot soldiers were sold for a nickel, reinforcing the company’s role in the low-cost dime-store market. After the war, Barclay updated its soldiers with M1-style helmets. Around 1951, the company removed the bases from many figures to conserve metal. Collectors refer to these figures as “podfoot” soldiers because each foot became a flattened rounded shape. The figures were painted in strongly simplified colors: American soldiers commonly appeared in olive drab with green helmets, while opposing figures used red uniforms and white helmets. As metal became more expensive, the retail price of individual figures rose to fifteen cents. Barclay’s distribution changed during the 1960s. Lead soldiers were increasingly absent from Woolworths and other dime stores and were more often sold through hobby shops. From 1964, soldier uniforms were painted green to represent the contemporary U.S. Army. At the same time, the company continued producing compact metal vehicles. Its cars were often just over an inch long, although larger three- and four-inch toys were also made. The simplified designs generally used single-cast bodies without windows or interiors. Some incorporated separately cast metal drivers, and many had characteristic pinched flat axles that extended from the wheels. The vehicle catalog included tiny Volkswagen Beetles, sports and racing cars, generic trucks, car carriers with folding ramps and themed trucks carrying miniature wooden barrels. A truck design appeared in versions associated with beer, milk and ice cream. Around 1960, Barclay introduced Bottle Series Metal Miniatures in clear blister packages shaped like bottles. The packaging used an “All American” presentation and was small enough to function as a low-priced novelty item. Barclay ceased trading in 1971. The company could not keep pace with plastic construction, new forms of die-cast design and changing competition, including Hot Wheels. Although the original manufacturing business ended, its products became collectible examples of American dime-store toys. During the 1990s, rights to the old Barclay trademark were reacquired, and later activity included solid-metal reproductions of Barclay and Manoil figures. This later use preserved the brand’s name and designs but did not restore the original company as an operating mass-market toy manufacturer.
- 1990
Trademark rights reacquired during the 1990s
[1]Rights to the former Barclay trademark were reacquired, enabling later reproduction products.
- 1971
Original company ceases trading
[1]Barclay stopped trading amid competition from plastic toys and changing market conditions.
- 1964
Modern Army color update
[1]Barclay began painting soldier uniforms green to reflect the appearance of the modern U.S. Army.
- 1960
Bottle Series miniatures marketed
[1]The company produced small metal vehicles in bottle-shaped blister packaging as part of its Bottle Series.
- 1951
Base-less podfoot figures introduced
[1]Barclay reduced metal use by removing bases from many soldiers, creating the collector-named podfoot style.
- 1942
Temporary wartime closure
[1]The company temporarily closed around 1942 after producing low-cost toy soldiers and military-related vehicles.
- 1939
Tommy Toy acquired
[1]Barclay acquired Tommy Toy and gained access to the work of sculptor Olive Kooken.
- 1922
Company formed
[1]Leon Donze and Michael Levy formed Barclay Manufacturing Company in approximately 1922 in New Jersey.
Products and positioning
An inexpensive, mass-market American metal-toy maker whose products were distributed through five-and-dime stores and later hobby shops. Its historical identity rests on affordable toy soldiers, compact die-cast vehicles and recognizable simplified castings rather than on premium realism.
Toy soldiers
Hollowcast toy soldiers
Barclay’s best-known products were inexpensive hollowcast metal soldiers sold individually through five-and-dime stores. Their designs changed over time to reflect contemporary uniforms, including open collars, shirts and ties, canvas leggings and later M1-style helmets. Collectors distinguish several production periods by paint schemes, bases and foot shapes. The figures’ affordability and broad retail distribution made them emblematic of American “dimestore” toy soldiers.
Toy soldiers · 1951
Podfoot soldiers
Introduced around 1951 as a metal-saving construction, podfoot soldiers lacked the conventional bases used on many earlier figures. Their feet ended in flattened, rounded forms that collectors came to describe as podfeet. The figures were painted in simplified, highly recognizable color schemes, including olive drab and green for American troops and red-and-white combinations for opposing soldiers.
Die-cast vehicles
Die-cast metal cars and trucks
Barclay produced compact metal vehicles in a wide range of forms, including sedans, coupes, Volkswagen Beetles, sports cars, racing cars and generic trucks. Many used simple single-cast bodies without windows or detailed interiors. Some included separately cast and painted drivers, while the pinched flat axles extending through the wheels became a recognizable feature of many Barclay models.
Military toys
Military vehicles
The company made small military vehicles during the prewar, wartime and postwar periods. The range included tanks, trucks with cannons and other military cars, often finished in brown or other subdued colors. These products complemented Barclay’s soldier figures and placed the company within the broader market for inexpensive military playsets and accessories.
Packaged miniatures · 1960
Bottle Series Metal Miniatures
Around 1960, Barclay packaged tiny vehicles in clear blister cards shaped like bottles. The package artwork combined an urban skyscraper image on one side with a country-lane scene on the other and used an “All American” presentation. The compact format and low price positioned the series as an accessible novelty and miniature-vehicle product.
Vehicle sets
Car-carrier and themed truck sets
Barclay offered vehicle combinations including a compact car carrier with a folding ramp and several cars. Other trucks carried miniature wooden barrels and appeared in themed versions associated with beer, milk and ice cream. These sets extended the play value of the company’s small vehicles beyond individual cars.
Reproduction figures · 1990
Solid-metal Barclay and Manoil reproductions
After rights connected with the historic Barclay name were reacquired during the 1990s, later production included solid-metal reproductions of Barclay and Manoil Manufacturing Company figures. These products serve the collector and reproduction market and represent a continuation of the brand’s designs rather than the original company’s pre-1971 mass-market operations.
Brand decisions
1971
Cessation of manufacturing operationsStrategyBackground
The company faced competition from plastic toys and newer die-cast products, including Hot Wheels, amid changing consumer preferences.
Action taken
Barclay ceased trading.
Aftermath
The original company became defunct, while its toys entered the collector market and its name was later used for reproduction products.
1951
Metal-conservation redesign of soldiersStrategyBackground
Rising metal costs put pressure on the economics of low-priced toy soldiers.
Action taken
Barclay removed figure bases from many soldiers, producing the later collector-named podfoot construction.
Aftermath
The redesign reduced material use but created a visually distinctive figure type that is now important to collectors.
1939
Acquisition of Tommy ToyM&ABackground
Tommy Toy was another producer of toy soldiers, and Barclay was expanding its position in the metal-figure market.
Action taken
Barclay acquired Tommy Toy and its associated sculptural resources, including the work of Olive Kooken.
Aftermath
The acquisition became part of Barclay’s development of revised soldier uniforms and expanded figure production.
Recent events
- 1990
Barclay trademark rights are reacquired[1]
Other
Rights connected with the former Barclay name were reacquired during the 1990s, supporting later production of solid-metal reproductions.
- 1971
Barclay Manufacturing Company ceases trading[1]
Bankruptcy · Other
The company stopped trading after struggling to compete with plastic toys and changing die-cast-toy market conditions.
Sources1 sources
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