An iconic image for any young boy's childhood.

In 1946, a small Minnesota company sought to manufacture gardening tools under the name Mound Metalcraft. This business model was quickly circumvented, however, when their side project of crafting metal toys became a much more viable market. By 1955, Mound Metalcraft became Tonka Toys Incorporated and that small side project became a childhood icon.

Company History

The word “Tonka” was an interesting choice, a Dakota-Sioux word for “great” and/or “big.” These days, Tonka is a word associated with great big trucks for kids. This is due to the famous line of metal construction vehicle toys that Tonka released in the mid-sixties.

The company spent many years with their metal trucks (dubbed the “Mighty” line), using the profits to acquire a barbecue manufacturer and expand their variety of products to attract other demographics.

A Tonka for any occasion.

This plan took off in the 1980s, when Tonka released Pound Puppies and Gobots. Though these were big sellers, the big yellow trucks never waned in popularity.

1991 came with a big change, as Tonka was bought out by Hasbro. Thankfully, the Tonka brand name never left, nor did their trademark trucks.

The Original

The original Mighty Tonka truck was, of course, the Mighty Dump Truck in1964. Back in the sixties, the line of yellow construction monsters also featured real rubber tires. At a whopping eleven pounds and big enough to haul a household cat (yes, I tried it), the truck is now a symbol of Tonka strength and durability.

Some of the marketing lines written for the early incarnations of the Mighty line included “Guaranteed for Life” and “Tonka Tough.” Rightly so, as the Mighty Dump is a common family heirloom that is safe in the hands of any generation.

They're still mighty tough these days.

Materials and designs

When I was a kid, I was fortunate enough to have some older metal Tonka trucks. They were suddenly scarce, becaus...