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This Website
Copyright ©
All
Rights Reserved
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Get THE BOOK on the History of Nichols
Industries
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THESE
ARE PAGES FOR OUR CUSTOMERS & THEIR GUNS & TOYS! (and
FUN!)
We are dedicating
this Scrapbook Section to the OTHER brands of Cap Guns, other
ANTIQUE TOYS, holsters, newspaper clippings and generally
everything that kids played with before 1970 (or so).
On these pages
you will find Hubley, Nichols, Schmidt, Kilgore, Kenton, Daisy, Classy, Halco,
Mattel, Mordt, Gene Autry, Hopalong Cassidy, Roy Rogers, The Lone Ranger,
Actoy, Buzz Henry, Leslie-Henry, Lone Star, The Cisco Kid, Kusan, Wyandotte,
Stevens and Carnell.
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This website costs a lot more to keep up than the meager
amount we take in when people place ads, as it is SO HUGE. But that's what our
Cap Gun Friends want: A HUGE SITE. If you enjoy our website, then we
politely ask you to contribute, in order to offset the (growing) expense. We
don't ask for much, but then every bit helps! If you will (hopefully) click on
the button below, then you can contribute at least $10 (or more if you like) to
help. It is not tax-deductible, as we hope to be a profitable enterprise.
—Thanks, Mike Nichols
(WE ALSO PROMISE NOT TO KEEP
YOUR PERSONAL INFORMATION NOR SOLICIT YOU FOR MORE DONATIONS!!!--WE HATE TO GET
CONSTANT BEGGING NOTES IN THE MAIL OR E-MAIL!)
We Take The Following Payment
Options
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Many people collect
entire sets of a particular brand of gun. We are very proud that MANY people
collect the entire series of Nichols Cap Guns.
However, there
are display sets and collections of other brands as well.
Some of you may
have overlooked some of our "Hidden Pages" by not clicking on all of the links
in this website. Yes, we have the primary Main Menu, but we have intersperced
"hidden" pages and "Pop-Ups." So go looking. The one on the right will pop
up.
On the right we
see a fantastic display of "The Restless Gun."
A simple little thing like a plastic toy truck.
In this case a rare Nichols toy truck. Most of you never knew Nichols ever made
anything besides Cap Guns. Well, they made sprinklers, cannisters and even hub
caps. The market for rare antique toys, however, is actually quite
large. |
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"The Restless Gun" a
display from the TV series.
CLICK TO
ENLARGE
Photo by
Jamie
Linford
(One of our
advertisers!) |
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Photo
thanks to Robert Nichols |
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And another
unusual Nichols toy from the late 50's or early 60's. This was an amphibious
car, an Aquacar if you will. It could drive off into the lake and just keep on
going as a boat, then drive up the other side and drive off. It was not a
success as a real car or as a toy.
This photo thanks to Bruce Lameyer.
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| BUDDY L TOY MACHINE CAP
GUN |
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Here is
a Cap Gun Machine Gun that doesn't quite fall into any other category, so I put
it here.
CLICK ON THE
THUMBNAILS!
Photos thanks to Jim Manning!
And another offering by our
buddy Jim Manning! This is a Topper Johnny Eagle Skeet Shooter cap rifle. These
are not seen that much and they look like an over and under shotgun. They break
open like a real shotgun with a lever on top of the receiver. It shoots roll
caps. They have a simulated engraved receiver and a dog on the stock. These
came in a set with a trap and clay type birds you shot at.
Photos thanks to
Jim
Manning!
Here is an unusual toy
gun from WAY DOWN UNDER! It says, "USA LIQUID PISTOL" on the left side. I don't
know anything about it at all except that it was apparently a water pistol and
when you squeezed the handle, then it squirted.
Photos thanks to
Peter Adam from New Zealand! |
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(Hey, We're going to emphasize
EVERY
SINGLE ADVERTISER AND THEIR PRODUCTS
that lists with us!) |
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"Hey Cisco......." "Hey Pancho."
Pancho (left)
was Leo Carrillo and The Cisco Kid was Duncan Renaldo. (I'm not sure where this
photo is from, so if it's yours, then I apologize and will take it off if you
ask.) |
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From 1951-1958 one of my favorite shows was the
"Adventures of Wild Bill Hickok." It starred Guy Madison as U.S. Marshal James
Butler "Wild Bill" Hickok and Andy Devine as Deputy Marshal Jingles P. Jones.
It ran 112 episodes. This show was actually on television AND radio! Good clean
fun, as was the rule in those days. Andy's real name was Andrew Vabre Devine,
born in Flagstaff, Arizona, He was one of my favorite characters. He had his
own kiddy show, starting in 1955, called "Andy's Gang." Guy Madison's real name
was Robert Moseley and was concocted by David O. Selznick and Henry Willson -
"The Guy girls wanted to meet," and Madison from a passing Dolly Madison cake
wagon. This is a pretty rare ad on the right. Photo from Mike Merryman. Thanks!
CLICK ON THUMBNAIL TO SEE BIGGER
PICTURE |
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| Here's another contribution from Mike Merryman
that is a badge from the short-lived TV show "Steve Donovan, Western Marshal"
starring Douglas Kennedy. It only ran 39 episodes, so anything you might find
from that TV show is going to be super rare. |
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And then there were companies which manufactured
Toy Cap Guns, but were not the really famous companies.
Here is a
Tootsie Toy Texan—"Made in USA." (1992) Hard to believe, huh? If the sane
ones in this country (that is you and me, of course) don't come to our
country's aid, then the entire hobby of Toy Cap Guns will be a thing of the
past, for many people these days believe that toys like this breed violence
among our children.
That's kind of strange when you consider that from 1946 to 1965,
when Nichols Industries was going full steam, MILLIONS of children had Cap Guns
and yet very few of us became criminals and we never even considered shooting a
classmate. Almost every boy carried a pocket knife, and we played "Mumblepeg"
during lunch.
Now even having a knife (or a toy cap gun) on campus is a crime
that will call down every policeman in the city. Somehow we are failing and
it's even getting worse.
Photo Contribution by Larry from an Ebay
auction. |
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One of the biggest
heroes to ever hit the screen: Davy Crockett! You know..."Born on a mountain
top in Tennessee, Greenest state in the land of the free..." Our hero, Fess
Parker as Davy Crockett. (shown here with old "Betsy") Well, we Texans ALL know
who he is, for he died in our Battle of the Alamo. But thanks to Davy, Sam
Houston, Jim Bowie and many others, we have a state, The Lone Star
State!
Photo courtesy of Bob Garvey
I'm sorry, but
I'm going to have to ask you to click on this thumbnail, as the regular photo
is entirely too large. This page takes quite long enough to load as it is. If
you weren't so interested in these Cap Guns, you probably would already have
given up a long time ago.
Many thanks to our friend Tom Coates for this
photo.
And even a belt buckle dedicated to our hero.
Photo courtesy
of Doug Hamilton
And a photo of The King of the Cowboys and one of
my
personal heroes, Doug Hamilton, alias "Cotton Eye Joe."
Doug is one of
the major contributors of photos to this site.
THANKS DOUG!!!
Oh, the other
guy is Roy Rogers. |
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Can you imagine? A "Fast Draw Contest." What would people
think now?
However, we had more common sense in those days and practiced
personal
responsibility and never blamed inanimate objects. We held people
responsible.
And the kids had a lot of fun!!!
Photo courtesy
of Troy
Greenwood |
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At the bottom of
every page is a Circle "N" Logo and when you click on it, it will take you back
to the top of the page. |
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(and others!) |
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Ahhhh! Here's one now! Jim
Turner at 9. He has a Nichols gun strapped to his side. He says the chimney
behind him was built by his ancestors in Virginia in 1760.
Photo credit by
Jim Turner of Nichols-Turner
Service Center. Thanks!
(one of our advertisers!) |
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By golly, there's another
one! Roger Turner at 5. He has (probably) a Hubley Texan gun. Though he's
building roads and diggin' in the dirt, you never know when the Bad Guys will
come.
Photo credit by
Jim Turner of Nichols-Turner
Service Center. Thanks!
(one of our advertisers!) |
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And Cowgirls!!! What would
we do without them? (I don't want to find out!)
Judy Sinkular in 1951. About
my age!
Photo credit by
Judy Sinkular of I SELL
NEAT STUFF. Thanks!
(one of our advertisers!) |
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Kids used to want to grow up
to be a cowboy. Some serious gear here. Watch him! His hand is close to his
shootin' iron.
Photo credit by
Dave Denton of The
Antique Cowboy. Thanks!
(one of our advertisers!) |
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Can you imagine how proud
this Young Buckaroo was
when he got this photo? Folks, this frame is ULTRA
RARE!!!
The boy's name is Lou Tosha from Alliance,Ohio.
He was 10 when
this was taken.
Photo credit by
Jim Manning of JM
Toys
(one of our advertisers!)
And here is another young
cowboy, dressed up as Hopalong Cassidy. Believe it or not, I never had a
complete cowboy suit like this. How much fun can you get?
Photo thanks to Larry
Johnston! |
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And here's another fine
young buckaroo, all dressed up in his Hoppy suit. Just look at that face. Have
you ever seen anybody more proud? |
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 Here is a photo from our
favorite...
Toy Gun Collectors of
America
newsletter at the Marx Museum in Glen Dean West
Virginia.
CLICK TO ENLARGE
Photo credit to J Harold Utley
(one
of our advertisers!) |
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Once again we see little
kids sporting "shootin' irons." The little Buckaroo on the left is Jim Manning
wearing his Hopalong Cassidy Single Holster outfit in 1951. My age! On the
right we see his brother Paul. (Oh, and of course, Uncle Bob!)
Photo credit to
Jim
Manning.
(one of our advertisers |
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(L) Eddie & (R) Troy
Greenwood, from 1961. They are armed with Parris Kadet Civil War Cap Gun
Muskets & Bayonets, along with Bowie Knife, Tomahawk, and Packs, guarding
the Northern portion of the Mojave Desert.
Photo credit to Troy Greenwood.
Thanks! |
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Shooting the "Bad Guy"
at the Fast Draw Contest this past November at the Dean Smith Celebrity Rodeo
and John Wayne Cancer benefit in Abilene Texas |
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And to the Victor go the
Spoils!!! Here is the proud winner. Bob, send me his name! Kids like this will
become good citizens in spite of what the liberals say! |
Ah, we have
the Boys against the Girls. No matter what most people think, girls are usually
quicker. And smarter and prettier. Notice the cowgirl ringing the bell!
Photo credits to
Bob
Terry of Wild West Toys. Thanks! |
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Photo credit to Dave Albert. Thanks! |
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Aren't these a hoot? This is Timothy McCoy,
sometime before 1949. I wish I had a little plane like that--that would fit
me! |
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A rough saloon with some young desperados.
The
left picture on the wall is Dwight Nichols, son of Talley W. Nichols
Photo contribution by Robert Nichols |
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And here is a photo of 3 of
my cousins (John in the middle, mentioned quite a few times in this website)
from 1950. L-R: BG (Billie Gwen), John and Kathie Jo Yocom. And it's a pretty
horse too. Kathie looks like she might be crying, but if you knew her better,
she just might have been singing! What a voice! Happy days!
Photo contribution by BG (Yocom)
Coulter |
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Gail
Davis was Annie Oakley on the television show. Wasn't she pretty?
Gail Davis
was the leading lady in many Gene Autry movies
and when he went into
television, he hired her to portray Annie Oakley.
This just shows that
collecting Cap Guns and playing like this was for boys AND
girls!
Main Office
Building ~ Nichols Industries Circa 1957
Uncle Talley's office is straight ahead, front door. The
engineering section
is on the far right. Upstairs is the design office, Mr.
Bill Simpson in charge.
A few years later the second floor was added to the
rest of the building.
There are several other buildings spread around the
grounds and there
is even an airfield located on the far backside of the
premises.
Thanks
Troy
Greenwood for this photo!
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| Visit the
Dealers &
Collectors from whom you can get these fine Nichols Cap Guns!
(and other FINE TOYS!) |
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| We will be
happy to list toy shows and the like (free), if you will please send them to me
at: . |
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| Should you
have some nice photos and/or some text, please send them to me at:
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