History of Lionel Trains

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The History of Lionel Trains

The History of Lionel Part 1

Lionel was founded by Joshua Lionel Cowen. He was from an immigrant family who arrived in New York just after the Civil War. He was born in 1877, and saw the invention of Edison's first electric light, and trains were the key transportation other than horses. He grew up with real trains, and the flurry of life changing activities and inventions of that era.

He began Lionel in 1900, with Passenger Lines such as the Peerless Twentieth Century Limited. It became Cowen’s Mission to encourage every man, woman, and child to embrace the train, that was so iconic in all their lives. After all, the train was not just for transportation, but an economical lifeline as it still is for society today.

Lionel's first trains were powered by wet-cell batteries. That mean acid-filled, and thankfully were soon replaced by the 110-volt electric transformers. Introduced in 1906 we had preassembled railroad tracks, Engines, Passenger and Freight Cars, Cabooses, spare parts, everything being sold to every family in America and beyond!

Here is just a small list of Lionel Trains and the History of Lionel Trains, some with educational information about Lionel Toy Trains and Train and Railroad Models and Layouts. We will tell you our own Lionel experience in here too.
1903-No. 5 Electric Locomotive-Baltimore & Ohio
1915-The War Efforts changed the World, no more German Trains, Lionel’s "Racing Automobiles" were selling like crazy, so many larger Trains were made to smaller scale. This began the smaller, less expensive O-gauge track, which is still in use to this day. Though the company became a corporation, the family tradition continued, with Cowen's son Lawrence ("The Happy Lionel Boy") gracing catalogs, packaging, and sales materials.
1917-With the War still in mind Lionel began marketing the O-gauge Armored Train. It was a locomotive that even came equipped with a cannon.

1920’s-The History of Lionel Trains took a big change right about this time...the Roaring 20's were here. War was over, people wanted to again indulge in their families, and with good reason. With endorsements and ads in newspapers, The Saturday Evening Post, Boys Train Magazines, on Lionel Radio, new slogans appeared like: "Lionel: The Father and Son Railroad," and "Real enough for a man to enjoy — simple enough for a boy to operate". No. 402 electric engine, the Hellgate Bridge, and the No. 840 Power Station which was much more elaborate, with functional moving parts, crossing gates, highway flashers, and all the bells and whistles.

1924-No. 402, a Standard Guage Passenger Set sees a strong resurgence with the public.
1926-Lionel Introduces the “Reverse” switch by buying it’s Competitor, Ives Manufacturing. To begin, there was a little button put on trains to engage that. 1931-During the Depression, Lionel took such a hit that it almost led to bankruptcy. They attempted to make up for losses by focusing on little girls and electric ranges, but held their own with the No. 400E. It was the largest standard gauge locomotive. It was called the Blue Comet and was a full passenger set.

It took Mickey and Minnie Mouse’s Handcar to restart their profit years. The handcar with a little $1 windup toy. 1935-Back in the profits, and with new designs-like the steam whistle on No. 45N, and the Automatic Gateman, Lionel also profited from the Union Pacific, the Hiawatha, and the Flying Yankee.
The No. 700E New York Central Hudson, came with it’s own set of blueprints and to scale with amazingly realistic details so it appealed to adult train lovers too.