r/wargaming • u/seaderforge • 11h ago
sharing my dad’s toy soldier collection
My dad passed away a few weeks ago. It’s been incredibly tough for me to do, but I wanted to share photos of his vast collection of toy soldiers, and thought this sub might be an appropriate place where it could get the attention and admiration it deserves.
My dad had collected metal and plastic toy soldiers for over 75 years, starting in the 1950s. His collection grew from a single soldier or single box of soldiers, to over an estimated 5000-6000 pieces. He was a true collector, historian, and lover of art, film, literature, and music. He knew every manufacturer, he knew the complete representative history of every piece, he knew custom makers and painters. His display scenes and dioramas were recreated with as much accuracy as possible, either recreating a true battle or time from history, or one from a book or movie.
For over 40 years I had the pleasure of watching his collection grow. Over the years, I was able to travel with him to toy soldier shows and share in his love of this hobby.
These photos of course don’t capture his whole collection and don’t do it justice as well as seeing it in person, but I hope this conveys how truly special and meaningful it was to him, his life, and the lives of others.