Limited Edition Toys from GrandpasToyShop

Click images below to see Bush Pilots in Action...

The History of Grandpa's Toy Shop

Grandpa was born in County Cork, Ireland in 1828 and disliked potatoes intensely, but disliked the lack of them even more.  So, during the height of the Irish Potato Famine, he emigrated to America, where he became a highly sought-after cabinet maker, who, in his spare time, often made wooden toys for his children and grand children. 

His eldest son, William Jr., learned cabinetry from him, and he later taught his son, William III the trade.  But William-III left his little New England town and, for a hair-raising but brief period, became a bush pilot in Alaska. 

After landing several airplanes upside down in the snow, William decided his to forsaking piloting for cabinet making, which he wisely deemed a safer occupation  Returning to New England, he soon became a highly sought-after cabinet maker, just as his predecessors had.

Years passed and he became Grandpa to more than a dozen frisky, freckle-faced, energetic grandchildren, and joyfully began building sturdy wooden toys for them, toys that encouraged them not only to use their fertile  imaginations but also to exercise and some burn off some of their abundant youthful energy (much to their parents' pleasure!).

Seeing the fun kids were having with these toys, neighbors soon started asking "Grandpa" to make them for their children, too.  He did...and word spread.  Eventually nearly every kid on the block had one or two of Grandpa's toys hanging from a porch or a tree or even inside their garage or barn!  More and more tourists saw these toys wanted them for their kids and grand kids...and, as a result, still more and more people saw them...and wanted them!

One day a great grandma asked Grandpa to create a "roll on the ground version" of his Bush Pilot Swing for littler "pilots".  So he did.  Then came requests for "rocking planes", and he made them, too!

Well, it didn't take long before kids were flying, and rocking and rolling....and taking off and landing... faster than birds caught in the middle of a New England duck shoot!  "Grandpa's Toy Shop" toys started turning up EVERYWHERE -- even Alaska!  One garage had three "Bush Pilot Planes" handing from the rafters!  The toys could be found swinging from trees, hanging on swing sets, rocking across kitchen floors and playrooms, rolling down driveways and sidewalks...even hanging on walls and from ceilings as family heirlooms!

Even though each toy was unique due to the different colors and grains of wood used to build it, Grandpa began carving, painting, and branding  initials into them so there'd be no contentious confusion as to which toy belonged to which "pilot" of "jockey" or "cowboy".  (It is not good, Grandpa discovered, for young adventurers to disagree about such things as aircraft or pony ownership!  The initials fixed all that...) 

Grandpa later figured it was a nice idea to remind kids of who actually GAVE them their favorite toy...so he started putting the giver's initials on them, too!  Everybody liked that so much, they all wanted initials put on their older "early" toys, so, Grandpa smiled...and did it for them!

And the more people liked things Grandpa did, the more they talked to other people about them, and the more those other people talked about that, the more they told others, who ALSO came to want Grandpa to make toys for their kids' and grand kids ...and even for their friends' kids! 

Grandpas and Grandmas and Great Grandparents, too, all seemed to REALLY want toys from Grandpa, who couldn't very well say "no" to them. That's when he started  GrandpasToyShop -- just for them...but mostly...for their kids!

So, that, in a nutshell, is the story of how an old, questionably-competent bush pilot sauntered away from multiple airplane crashes and other not-to-be-mentioned flying mistakes to became a successful New England cabinet maker, and then a very happy Grandpa...and equally happy toy maker!

Most mornings these days we see him walking down the streets of our little New England village with his little dog "Biplane" nipping at his heels as he whistles a tune and checks the state of local, low-hanging aircraft and driveway-parked biplanes. 

Occasionally a pint-sized Amelia Earhardt or Jimmy Dolittle strides out into the brisk morning air and gives him a happy-faced wave. Grandpa, ever-respectful of young pilots, snaps to attention, gives the intrepid young adventurer a crisp salute, and then watches as he or she soars into the wild blue yonder of youthful imagination...