Yo Way! How Wisconsin became the ‘Yo-Yo Capital of the World’

DID YOU KNOW 🧐 One of the world’s most famous toys, the Duncan Yo-Yo, was made in Wisconsin for most of its existence?

Yo-yos date back to ancient Egypt, but the Duncan story starts in Santa Monica, California in the 1920s. Philippine immigrant Pedro Flores worked as a hotel bellhop and liked to play with his “yo-yo,” which meant “come, come” in his native language. Seeing how much his guests enjoyed watching him play, Flores decided to open a yo-yo factory in 1929 and mass produce the toy.

The next year, Donald Duncan, founder of Good Humor ice cream, saw great potential and purchased Flores’ business. Duncan’s yo-yo was a bit different: incorporating a slip string, which allowed the yo-yo to spin or “sleep” on its axle. Instead of only spinning up and down, the new-and-improved yo-yo was now capable of doing tricks! The yo-yo exploded in popularity during the 1930s.

🤯 MORE: 7 Cool Things You Didn’t Know About Yo-Yos

In 1946, Duncan built a factory in Luck, Wisconsin, choosing the area for its abundance of hard maple. The factory cranked out 3,600 yo-yos per hour, earning tiny Luck the nickname: “The Yo-Yo Capital of the World.”

The toy industry was changing, though, with demand for plastic instead of wood. So in 1955, Duncan contracted with Baraboo’s Flambeau Products Corporation to make the first plastic yo-yos. By 1962, the Duncan Company sold a record 45 million!

However, all good things must come to an end, and in 1965, the Federal Court of Appeals ruled that Duncan’s trademark for the word “yo-yo” was no longer valid. Duncan declared bankruptcy three years later.

But that’s not the end of the story: The Flambeau Products Corporation bought the name “Duncan” and all the company’s trademarks. Today, they produce eleven different models at their plant in Columbus, Indiana.