A Unique Art Circus Night

A selection Of Unique Art Trains .Unique's president, Sammy Bergman, was a friend of Louis Marx, and the two men's companies at times cooperated, with Marx providing tooling to Unique and as a distributor for Unique's products. In 1949, Unique began producing lithographed tin O gauge toy trains, using tooling of its own design along with some recycled tooling from the defunct Dorfan Company. Unique sold its trains in inexpensive boxed sets like Marx, and also produced a circus set that was distributed on a car-by-car basis by the [Jewel Tea Company] Jewel Companies. Marx saw this as a betrayal and responded with a new line similar in size to Unique's, but with lithography that looked more realistic. Unique found itself unable to compete, and withdrew its trains from the marketplace by 1951.
What you see here is a boxed Jewel Tea Circus set, a boxed wind up set and a boxed freight set. The windup and freight sets have a few extra cars added for this running session. The electric engines and tenders are a blue with gray trim and the winups are a two tone gray.

Category:

Entertainment

Tags:

• Unique Art Toys
• Toy Trains
• The Circus

[JEFFNMANDA3]

Hello again Steve, just curious ive recently aquired a neat unique lines piece and I have not seen anything like it before its a unique lines tender just like the one for the 1950 steam engine but instead of being blue its black witht the unique lines litho still on it. Been looking for info on it but its got me stumped and ive never seen one like it. If you want to see pics just let me know and I will show you.  Thanks again for the ives 45 degree crossing working on it now.

JEFF

[gigeastman]

@JEFFNMANDA3

Jeff

The black tender is a VERY hard to find legitimate version. Congrats on a great score. I am not sure of it being documented in any books, but I have seen them before.

Let me know how the 45 works and what was needed to make it work.

Steve

[gigeastman]

@JEFFNMANDA3

Jeff

I would like a couple photo's of the black U/A tender for my files.

Steve

[JEFFNMANDA3]

I do love the circus cars with the nice litho on them. Ive already got the passenger set with the city of joplin and the garden city passenger cars. I really do wish that they would have added more cars to that set, and on a side note I wish that marx would have added an observation car to the old pre war CP passenger set. Ive almost won the stock car a few times on ebay but it just goes to steep for what I want to give for just one car. thanks again for sharing your trains with us.

JEFF

[gigeastman]

@JEFFNMANDA3

One of the guys on the Marx Yahoo group was also wanting a CP observation. May try and make one some day, but that wine over gold color will be tough.

Steve

[JEFFNMANDA3]

Fantastic Job!! Many people are unfamiliar with these sets but I know that they are rare and fun to own. Love the brake-man caboose and all the litho on these sets and the circus cars are fantastic. Also nice wind-up 742 engine, these are tough because all the motors are always riveted in place. Fantistic work and I love the sets. Ive always loved the unique art line of trains because of their size and detailing on the engines and cars is kind of cartoony looking. Great work!!

JEFF

[gigeastman]

Jeff, thanks for the kind words. I still need to acquire a passenger set, a stock car and the open top circus cars, but do to the cost they will come slowly.

Steve

[JEFFNMANDA3]

@gigeastman Thanks for your help again Steve I really appreciate it a bunch. The ives 45 degree looks to be a very usable piece I will just need to modify it very little for the marx gears to get through, I will let you know when im done. That black tender came with my circus cars "closed tops" and the engine and caboose. Ive already got 2 1950 engines and also ive recently added the rare cattle car as well so my unique collection is growing, thanks again Steve

JEFF