John Hill & Company

John Hill & Company, widely identified by the trade name Johillco, was a British toy manufacturer active from 1898 until the early 1960s. The firm became one of the principal British makers of hollowcast metal toy soldiers, competing most directly with W. Britain, whose toy-soldier business had helped establish the market. Johillco was founded by F. H. Wood, a former employee of W. Britain. The available historical record does not explain the origin of the name John Hill, and the personal identity of that name is therefore uncertain. The company’s early importance came partly from its selling method. Whereas toy soldiers were often sold in boxed sets or standardized groups, Johillco was an early British hollowcast-figure manufacturer to sell individual figures. This allowed customers to select particular poses and build collections incrementally. W. Britain later responded by offering more individually sold figures and by producing simpler, less ornately painted figures suitable for distribution through variety stores, including F. W. Woolworth outlets. Johillco’s relatively accessible pricing and varied poses helped it establish a strong position among families who could not or did not wish to buy the more expensive boxed products associated with Britains. The company’s range extended beyond conventional infantry figures. Its products included soldiers, cowboys and Indians, knights, astronauts, robots, aliens, and commemorative or souvenir pieces associated with coronations and other public occasions. Johillco also produced a licensed or tie-in group of figures connected with MGM’s film Quo Vadis. This breadth made the company’s output relevant both to traditional military miniature collecting and to children’s imaginative play based on history, popular entertainment, and science fiction. Johillco’s original factory stood at 2–22 Britannia Row in Islington, London, but the premises were destroyed or severely affected by bombing during the Second World War. The business reopened in August 1946 under new management at Plumbe Street in Burnley. The postwar period also saw the departure of chief figure designer Wilfred Cherrington, who subsequently established Cherilea with a colleague identified in historical accounts as Mr Leaver. Collectors and historians have described Johillco figures as particularly common in working-class homes because of their lower prices and individually varied poses. The quality of the range was uneven, probably reflecting the use of multiple sculptors or suppliers, and surviving examples are consequently regarded as ranging from highly effective designs to crude or unattractive ones. This inconsistency is part of the company’s historical character rather than evidence of a single uniform design system. Johillco was slow to adapt to the growing importance of plastic toys. From 1956 it began producing plastic figures using existing hollowcast moulds under the Hilco name. The conversion did not secure the company’s long-term survival, and John Hill & Company ceased operations in the early 1960s. Its surviving metal and plastic figures remain of interest to toy-soldier collectors, especially because they document the development of lower-cost British miniature toys and the transition from hollowcast metal to plastic production.

John Hill & Company was established in 1898 by F. H. Wood, who had previously worked for W. Britain, the leading British name in toy soldiers. The company’s commonly used Johillco name became associated with hollowcast metal figures designed for children’s play and collecting. The historical sources do not establish who, if anyone, the John Hill name commemorated. Johillco differentiated itself through its willingness to sell figures individually. This format gave buyers the ability to choose particular poses rather than purchase only standardized boxed groups. The approach supported a lower-cost, mix-and-match style of collecting and helped the company reach customers outside the market for premium boxed toys. W. Britain later adopted related selling practices and simplified some figures for broader retail distribution, including through variety stores. The firm produced a wide selection of subjects. Military figures formed the core of its range, but the catalogue also included cowboys and Indians, knights, coronation and other souvenir pieces, and figures inspired by science fiction. Johillco additionally made a group connected with MGM’s Quo Vadis film. The variety of themes allowed the company to serve both traditional toy-soldier customers and children interested in historical, cinematic, or futuristic subjects. Johillco’s original manufacturing site was at 2–22 Britannia Row in Islington, London. The factory was bombed during the Second World War, disrupting the business. In August 1946 the company resumed production under new management at Plumbe Street in Burnley. The postwar reorganization did not prevent further changes in the design and manufacturing organization. Wilfred Cherrington, described as the company’s chief figure designer, left after the war and later formed Cherilea with a partner identified in the available account as Mr Leaver. Historical writing on toy soldiers places Johillco in a different social and economic segment from Britains. Its figures were comparatively inexpensive and were often found in working-class households. Their individually varied poses increased their play value, although surviving examples show inconsistent standards of sculpting and finishing. Collectors have attributed this variation in part to the likely use of several sculptors, producing a range that included both strong and weak designs. The company was slow to respond to the industry’s shift toward plastic. Beginning in 1956, it used hollowcast moulds to produce plastic figures under the Hilco name. This was an attempt to participate in the new material and production model, but it came relatively late. John Hill & Company ended its operations in the early 1960s. The company’s surviving products are now primarily studied and collected as examples of British toy manufacturing, affordable miniature figures, and the transition from hollowcast metal to plastic.

• 1956

  Plastic production begins under the Hilco name

  [1]John Hill & Companyen.wikipedia.org

  Johillco began making plastic figures from its hollowcast moulds and marketed them under the Hilco name.

• 1946

  Production resumes in Burnley

  [1]John Hill & Companyen.wikipedia.org

  Under new management, the company reopened in August at Plumbe Street in Burnley.

• 1898

  Company founded

  [1]John Hill & Companyen.wikipedia.org

  F. H. Wood, a former W. Britain employee, established John Hill & Company in Britain as a manufacturer of toy figures.

• Individual-figure sales become a distinguishing feature

  [1]John Hill & Companyen.wikipedia.org

  Johillco became an early British hollowcast-figure maker to sell figures individually, supporting affordable and varied collecting.

• Islington factory bombed during the Second World War

  [1]John Hill & Companyen.wikipedia.org

  The company’s original premises at Britannia Row, Islington, were bombed during the war.

• Company ceases operations

  [1]John Hill & Companyen.wikipedia.org

  John Hill & Company ended production in the early 1960s after a late transition toward plastic manufacturing.

Affordable, individually sold British toy figures offering varied poses and a broad subject range, positioned as an accessible alternative to more expensive boxed toy-soldier products.

• Hollowcast metal figures

  Johillco hollowcast toy soldiers

  The company’s principal products were hollowcast metal toy soldiers sold under the Johillco name. They were known for being relatively inexpensive and for being available as individual figures rather than only as uniform boxed sets. The range included varied poses and subjects, making the figures suitable for both imaginative play and gradual collection. Quality varied across the catalogue, likely reflecting the work of multiple sculptors or production sources.

• Historical miniature toys

  Military and historical figures

  Johillco produced soldiers and other historical subjects alongside its general military range. Knights and related figures broadened the company’s appeal beyond modern or nineteenth- and twentieth-century military themes. Their relatively accessible price and individualized poses placed them in the everyday play market rather than exclusively in premium collector-oriented presentation.

• Western-themed figures

  Cowboys and Indians

  Western-themed cowboys and Indians formed part of Johillco’s non-military range. These figures extended the company’s offering into popular adventure play and provided subjects that could be combined with other individually purchased figures. They were part of the broad thematic selection for which Johillco was known.

• Science-fiction miniature toys

  Space figures

  The company made science-fiction figures including astronauts, robots, and aliens. These products show that Johillco responded, at least in part, to the popularity of futuristic themes in postwar children’s toys. They complemented the company’s older military and historical subjects with imaginative space-oriented play.

• Film tie-in figures

  Quo Vadis figurines

  Johillco produced a set of figurines associated with MGM’s Quo Vadis film. The range connected the company’s miniature-figure manufacturing with contemporary cinema licensing or film merchandising, while also fitting its established interest in historical and Roman-themed subjects.

• Plastic toy figures · 1956

  Hilco plastic figures

  From 1956, John Hill & Company entered plastic production under the Hilco name. The company used existing hollowcast moulds as the basis for some of these plastic figures, reflecting an attempt to adapt established designs to the industry’s changing materials and manufacturing economics. The Hilco line did not prevent the company from closing in the early 1960s.

• 1956

  Move into plastic production under HilcoStrategy

  Background

  Plastic was becoming increasingly important in toy manufacturing, but Johillco was comparatively slow to respond to the material’s growth.

  Action taken

  The company began producing plastic figures from its hollowcast moulds and marketed the resulting products under the Hilco name.

  Aftermath

  The change represented a late effort to modernize the product range, but the company ceased operations in the early 1960s.

  Source

1. 1John Hill & Companyen.wikipedia.org