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| Coles Novelty Company Yo-Yo |
| Exhibit #4819 |
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| Type | Advertising |
| Size | 32mm |
| Condition | Mint |
| Date | 1920 |
| To | 1932 |
| Owner | Rick Brough |
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The item shown is a vintage celluloid advertising or promotional pinback button, featuring the bold red text "Yo-Yo" in an early stylized font on a cream background. It was manufactured by Coles [likely] Novelty Company, 898 North High Street, Columbus, Ohio, a company known for making pinback buttons and novelties in the early 20th century.
The back of the pin includes the patent dates 1894 and 1902 — likely referring to the pinback button mechanism, not the yo-yo itself.
No Duncan name or branding appears anywhere on the button.
This pin likely dates to the late 1920s or early 1930s, before Donald Duncan acquired the rights to the term “Yo-Yo” in 1932. The term "Yo-Yo" was popularized in the U.S. by Filipino-American Pedro Flores, whose yo-yo company began producing the toy commercially in 1928. It's plausible that this pin was created by a Flores promoter, an early distributor, or a regional marketing effort independent of Duncan. The absence of a company name like Duncan or Flores on the pin suggests it may have been a generic promotional item, possibly handed out at contests or included with early yo-yo packaging before strict branding was enforced.
This pin possibly represents one of the earliest examples of yo-yo promotion in the United States. It may predate or coincide with the period when the toy transitioned from novelty to national fad. Its use of the term "Yo-Yo" (then still untrademarked or loosely enforced) reflects the evolving commercial identity of the toy before Duncan’s dominance.
About the pinback button mechanism
The pinback button appears to use a collet-style open-back mechanism, a common design for pinback buttons manufactured in the late 19th and early 20th centuries — especially from the 1890s through the 1930s.
The back references patents from 1894 and 1902, which refer to early pinback button technologies — likely the patents of Whitehead & Hoag who pioneered this manufacturing method.
There’s no rotating catch or clasp, and no safety mechanism, which was typical for pinbacks of this era. This pin mechanism is often associated with pre-WWII pinback buttons. | |
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