#a.c. gilbert

The A.C. Gilburt Company:  Encouraging children to play with molten glass, molten lead, homemade explosives, and uranium since 1922!

Yes, you read that correctly.  The A.C. Gilburt Company was originally founded in 1909 to supply the materials for magicians’ shows, but later grew into one of the largest toy companies in the world before finally shutting down in 1964.  In 1922, the company began producing chemistry sets, which later branched off into all kinds of scientific curiosities absolutely NOT appropriate for children.

The Gilbert Glass Blowing Kit encouraged boys to tackle the art of glass blowing--an art consisting of glass being molded, twisted, bent, or otherwise blown up like a piece of bubble gum.  To accomplish this, the glass must be softened into a molten state, which requires it to be heated to a staggering 1,000° Fahrenheit.  Interesting that the kit doesn’t seem to come with any sort of eye protection, nor does it come with any reminders that molten glass can BURN YOU.

Eh, I’m sure he’ll be fine using his bare hands.  Gloves are for casuals.

The Gilbert Kaster Kit Jr. taught kids to work with molten lead, because apparently, working with a highly poisonous metal just wasn’t quite dangerous enough.  Better force the kids to heat it to 400° Fahrenheit as well, so they can make an army of toxic toy soldiers to slowly give them brain damage while they patrol the barracks of the backyard.

Don’t worry, little Billy.  I’m sure your mom won’t mind you setting a ladle full of molten lead on the kitchen table.

Gilbert put out numerous chemistry sets, and predictably, numerous lawsuits would later follow.  Why?  Because these kits often included chemicals such as ammonium nitrate, which is frequently found in homemade explosives.  But then, the manufacturers couldn’t possibly be stupid enough to point out the destructive potential of these chemicals to children, right?

...Oops.

Gilbert’s #1 biggest blunder came about in 1950 in the form of the U-238 Atomic Energy Lab.  The set was put on the market for a whopping $42.50--an equivalency of around $662 by today’s standards.  Quite a lot to spend for a single toy, but this was a very special toy:  It came with its very own uranium!  And what’s more, the manual provided tips for kids on how to mine more radioactive samples, as well as provided coupons for ordering them direct from Gilbert.

You can actually view the manual for yourself here.  The kit even came with a delightful little comic book entitled “Dagwood Splits the Atom”, because when you think “advanced scientific knowledge”, you think Dagwood Bumstead.

Well, at the very least, Gilbert was nice enough to include a Geiger counter so kids could measure the increasing levels of radiation buildup in their toy boxes.