Dirigible | model kit:Schoenhut's Dirigible Builder

In the history of aviation, the years between the first and second world wars gave rise to some of the most creative means of flight. Developments in the designs of airplanes, autogiros, dirigibles, and balloons and daring speed and endurance competitions made taking to the skies seem adventurous, progressive, and even heroic. Barnstormers and local air shows brought the thrill of flying to every corner of America. Toy manufacturers did not take long to make and market toys that reflected Americans' fascination with aviation. A. Schoenhut & Company, a well-established toy manufacturer in Philadelphia, brought out its Dirigible Builder in 1929, when dirigible travel seemed glamorous and when some aviation enthusiasts thought luxury dirigibles might replace ocean liners as the preferred mode of travel for the very rich. That idea ended, of course, with the spectacular explosion of the German Hindenburg in Lindenhurst, New Jersey, in 1937. Such harsh reminders of danger, however, seldom scared off young boys especially when toy dirigibles, planes, and autogiros reminded them daily of their dreams to fly.