McLoughlin Bros., Inc. was a New York manufacturing company active between 1858[2] and 1920. As a publisher itself, the company was a pioneer in color printing technologies in children's books.[3] The company specialized in retellings or bowdlerizations of classic stories for children.
The artistic and commercial roots of the McLoughlin firm were first developed by John McLoughlin, Jr. (1827–1905) who made his younger brother Edmund McLoughlin (1833 or 4-1889) a partner in 1855. By 1886, the firm published a wide range of items, including cheap chapbooks, large folio picture books, linen books, puzzles, games, paper soldiers and paper dolls.
In this artwork for Teddy the Bear by Sarah Noble Ives, printer's notes regarding ink colors can be seen in the top left
Many of the earliest and most valuable board games in America were produced by McLoughlin Brothers of New York. In 1920 the corporation was sold to Milton Bradley & Company. McLoughlin ceased game production at this time, but continued publishing their picture books. MB itself was purchased by Hasbro in 1984 and merged with Parker Brothers in 1998 to form Hasbro Games. The two became brands of Hasbro until 2009 when they were retired in favor of the Hasbro name.
The company worked with numerous artists of the time, including Sarah Noble Ives, William Bruton, Edward P. Cogger, Enos Comstock, Frances Bassett Comstock, Georgina A. Davis, Henry Walker Herrick, Justin H. Howard, May Audubon Post, Victor Renwick, Ida Waugh, and Lois Williams.[1] These artists created richly colored watercolors as well as pen-and-ink drawings, which were adapted to the printing processes for mass production.
John McLoughlin, Jr.'s death in 1905 caused the firm the loss of his artistic and commercial leadership, so in 1920 it was sold to the Milton Bradley Company.[4] Followng that, the Brooklyn factory was closed and the firm moved to Springfield, Massachusetts. During its time as a division of Milton Bradley, McLoughlin ceased game production although it continued publicating picture books. McLoughlin Bros. enjoyed some success in the 1930s with mechanical paper toys called "Jolly Jump-Ups" but the it stopped production during World War II.[1]
In 1951 the "McLoughlin Brothers" trademark was sold to New York toy manufacturer Julius Kushner. At that time, their collection of original artwork for publication was split between members of the board. A portion of that collection was later donated to the American Antiquarian Society.[1] In 1954, McLoughlin Brothers books were sold to Grosset & Dunlap.[5] Kushner released some McLoughlin's successful products such as the Jolly Jump-Ups.[1]
On the other hand, the McLoughlin line of children's books was sold to Grosset & Dunlap in June 1954. Several books bearing the 'McLoughlin Bros.' imprint were issued until the 1970s when the name dropped out of print.[1]
