The Strong® is home to hundreds of thousands of historical objects related to play, including the world’s most comprehensive collection of toys, dolls, games, electronic games, books, photographs, documents, and other historical materials related to play. This unprecedented assemblage of historical materials of play offers a unique interpretive and educational window into the critical role of play in human physical, social, and intellectual development and the ways in which play reflects cultural history.
For purposes of management and interpretation, these collections are organized and maintained under three different Play Partners or programmatic arms of The Strong:
- National Museum of Play
- International Center for the History of Electronic Games
- Brian Sutton-Smith Library and Archives of Play
Key collection holdings are described below:
National Museum of Play
- Barbie Dolls
- Dolls after 1950 (excluding Barbie)
- Dolls before 1950
- Paper Dolls
- All-Fair Collection
- Board Games
- Card Games and Playing Cards
- McLoughlin Brothers Collection
- Milton Bradley Collection
- Parker Brothers Collection
- Role-Playing Games
- Ron Dubren Collection
- Sid Sackson Prototypes Collection
Home Crafts and Hobbies Collection
Raggedy Ann and Andy Collection
Souvenir and Postcard Collection
Iris F. Hollander November Statue of Liberty Collection
Marianne Szymanski Toy Tips Collection
- Airplanes
- Alphabet and Building Blocks
- Cast-Iron Vehicles
- Construction Sets
- Dollhouse Furnishings, Miniatures, and Miniature Rooms
- Dollhouses
- Mechanical and Still Banks
- Mechanical Toys
- Star Wars Action Figure Collection
- Teddy Bears
- Trains
- Yo-Yos
- Arcade Manufacturing Company Collection
- Fisher-Price Collection
- Louis Marx Collection
- Arto Monaco Collection, 1945-1995
- Playskool Toddler Collection
- Ty Beanie Baby Collection
International Center for the History of Electronic Games
- Early Games, 1971–1978
- Golden Age Games, 1978–1985
- Vector-Based Graphic Games, 1977–1985
- Simulator Specialty Games, 1985–Present
Gaming System (Hardware) Collection
- Consoles, 1972–present
- Handhelds, 1976–present
- Personal Computers, 1979–present
- Children’s Electronic Toys, 1976–present
- Console Games, 1972–present
- Computer Games, 1978–present
- Educational Games, 1978-present
- Her Interactive Collection
- Microsoft Collection
- Westwood Studios Collection
Library and Archival Collections
- Atari Arcade Design Collection, 1974–1989
- Dan Bunten (Dani Bunten Berry) Papers, 1949-1998
- Ralph H. Baer Papers, 1960s–2009
- Books and Periodicals
- Computer Gaming World Collection, 1982–2000s
- Don Daglow Papers, 1977–2010
- Kevin Gifford Video Game Magazine Collection, 1970s–present
- Trade Catalogs
- Prima Games Collection, 1990 to present
- Ken and Roberta Williams Collection, 1979–1996
- Will Wright Papers, 1989–2010
Brian Sutton-Smith Library and Archives of Play
- Association of Game and Puzzle Collectors Collection, 1850–2010
- Children’s Books and Periodicals
- Comic Books
- Joe L. Frost Collection, 1967–2006
- Little Golden Books
- Stephen and Diane Olin Toy Catalog Collection, 1850–2010
- Playthings Magazine Collection, 1903–2010
- Brian Sutton-Smith Collection, 1949–2009
- Trade Catalogs
- Aeolian American Piano Corporation Collection, 1840s–1950s
- Stan and Jan Berenstain Archive of Cartoon Art, 1940s–1980s
- Fields of Play Film Series
- Gruelle Family Collection, 1880s–2008
- Philip E. Orbanes Papers
- Vivian Gussin Paley Papers, 1973–2010
- Anthony Pellegrini Papers
- C. J. Rogers Papers, 1993–present
- Sid Sackson Collection, 1867–2000
- Brian Sutton-Smith Papers, 1949–2009
- Toyland Digital Video Archive
