Empire B-30 Toy Steam Engine
date: label: date made
content: mid 20th century
notes: label: Description (Brief)
content: The Metal Ware Corporation of Two Rivers, Wisconsin produced the B-30 model toy steam engine during the first half of the 20th century, beginning in the 1920s. This toy steam engine’s boiler was electrically heated, with the heating element inside the red cast iron base. The nickel plated copper boiler has a sight glass on the left, a safety valve inside the chimney stack, a steam whistle, and throttle for the horizontal slide valve engine that powered the flywheel and driving pulley. Advertising shows this engine powering accessories like a lathe and water pump, and touts the toy as “the finest a boy ever had for mechanical instruction and fun.”
label: Description (Brief)
content: The company began in 1920 in Two Rivers, Wisconsin, as a manufacturer of copper- and nickel-plated utensils. As electricity became more prevalent in homes, the company began producing children’s toys and soon became the world’s largest electric toy manufacturer, with products such as fully functional steam engines and ovens. By the mid-1900s, Metal Ware established itself as a housewares manufacturer, expanding its capabilities and product lines.
label: Description (Brief)
content: Source: https://www.mwcorp.com/the-metal-ware-corporation-celebrates-100th-anniversary/ (accessed July 2025)
label: Location
content: Currently not on view
place: label: place made
content: United States: Wisconsin, Two Rivers
setName: label: See more items in
content: Work and Industry: Mechanical and Civil Engineering
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content: Family & Social Life
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content: Engineering, Building, and Architecture
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content: Engineering Steam Toys and Models
publisher: label: Related Publication
content: Maass, Eleanor A.. Greville Bathe's "Theatre of Machines": The Evolution of a Scholar and His Collection
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: Bequest of the Estate of Greville I. Bathe
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of American History
identifier: label: ID Number
content: MC.328988
label: catalog number
content: 328988
label: accession number
content: 278175
objectType: label: Object Name
content: toy, steam engine and boiler
label: Object Name
content: steam engine and boiler, toy
physicalDescription: label: Physical Description
content: nickel plate (boiler material)
label: Physical Description
content: cast iron (engine material)
label: Physical Description
content: cast iron (base material)
label: Measurements
content: base: 9 1/4 in x 5 3/4 in; x 23.495 cm x 14.605 cm
label: Measurements
content: overall: 8 in x 9 3/8 in x 5 3/4 in; 20.32 cm x 23.8125 cm x 14.605 cm