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Toy soldier makers started producing civilian figures early. The advent of wind-up and electric trains brought greater interest in miniature civilians. Used as scenery, they enhanced many a train layout. In the early days, scale was not an issue for the overwhelming majority of toy railroad operators. Large 54mm, 60mm and even 75mm figures adorned both O gauge and Standard gauge layouts.
With plastic production, new civilian figures were produced to accompany other toys, such as fire engines, police cars, farms and construction vehicles. Many of these found their way to the train table, standing side by side with older metal railroad figures. Despite their being made to accompany toys, they all fit in the category of "railroad figures" whether made for train layouts or not.
Beton produced a range of large civilian figures. They were often used with train sets. Though the figures were just right for Standard gauge, they showed up on many an O gauge and O27 layout. Pictured above are a stalwart fireman, traffic cop, patrolman and little girl. |
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