The "Playskool Institute" was established by Lucille King in 1928 as a division of the John Schroeder Lumber Company in
Milwaukee,
Wisconsin. King, an employee at the company, developed wooden toys to use as teaching aids for children in the classroom. In 1935, the Playskool Institute became a division of Thorncraft, Inc., and established offices in Chicago, Illinois. In 1938, Playskool was purchased by the Joseph Lumber Company, where Manuel Fink was placed in charge of operations. In 1940, Fink, along with Robert Meythaler, bought Playskool and established the "Playskool Manufacturing Company". In 1943, Playskool bought the J.L. Wright Company, the manufacturer of
Lincoln Logs. In 1958, Playskool merged with Holgate Toys, Inc., a wood product manufacturer based in
Kane, Pennsylvania. In 1962, they purchased the Halsam Company, a producer of wooden blocks, checkers, dominoes, and construction sets. In 1968, Playskool became a subsidiary of
Milton Bradley; both companies were acquired by
Hasbro, Inc. in 1984. After the acquisition, Playskool began operating out of
Pawtucket, Rhode Island as a division of Hasbro. In 1985, Playskool released a line of infant products under the
Tommee Tippee brand name, including bibs and bottles. Many Hasbro products targeted at preschoolers were rebranded with the Playskool name, including
Play-Doh, and
Tonka. Playskool also began licensing toys from other designers, creating licensing agreements to manufacture
Teddy Ruxpin,
Barney,
Arthur,
Teletubbies, and
Nickelodeon branded products. In 2023,
Hasbro entered into a licensing agreement with
PlayMonster that would see the company take over the toy line, which was effective by the following year. In 2025, Just Play Products, under license from Hasbro, announced a relaunch of the Playskool brand, with the release of a toy collection. ==Products==