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Arkansas holds a special place in the history of children’s toys with the invention of the Wonder Horse by William Baltz in Pocahontas, Randolph County. In 1939, Baltz, an inventive surveyor and farmer, created a bouncing, rocking horse for his young son using packing crates and a wooden frame. This innovative twist on the traditional rocking horse quickly became a sensation in his community.
An early version of the Wonder Horse is displayed in the Randolph County Heritage Museum. Photo courtesy of the Arkansas Department of Heritage, Parks and Tourism.
Toy horses have captivated children for centuries. Hobby horses, or stick horses, date back to ancient Persia and Greece, where children played with them as early as 400 BC. The first recorded rocking horse appeared in the 1600s, with King Charles I of England owning one. By the Victorian era, painted rocking horses with spotted coats, leather saddles, and horsehair manes became beloved Christmas gifts for children, cementing their place in playrooms across the world.
Baltz named his creation the Wonder Horse, a nod to Arkansas’s nickname, the Wonder State. Neighbors immediately sought their own, and Baltz, with the help of a carpenter, began producing up to 50 horses a day. Despite his efforts, demand exceeded supply. In 1945, Baltz secured a patent for the Wonder Horse and sold it to A.G. Manning of Associated Woodworks in Memphis, the only company to see its potential for mass production. Manning expanded the toy’s legacy with several models, including a deluxe version with added features, ensuring the Wonder Horse’s place in childhood history.
The Baltz family in 1939. Bill Baltz, a man of humble German-migrant origin who couldn’t speak English until he was nine years old, became a successful surveyor and store owner even before his invention. He made enough money to raise a large family and to purchase a 1,500-acre farm in Randolph County. (Photo courtesy Randolph County Museum Archive)
Prices for the original Wonder Horse began at $10.95 for the base model and a deluxe ran up to $29.95. These prices when Associated Woodworks took over meant a family would need to save to bring home a Wonder Horse for Christmas, but the toy horse was still exceptionally popular. In fact, Manning expanded the selection of Wonder Horses to four different models and by the end of the 1950s, the factory shifted from using wood to molding the horses from plastic. This allowed for more colorful horses, and the palomino became a popular choice. Manning opened another factory in Illinois to keep up with demand for the Wonder Horse. The horse remained a popular toy through the next several decades, and many adults remember riding these bouncing horses in their childhoods.
The Wonder Horse is now instantly recognizable to those who rode so many afternoons away on a galloping horse invented in Arkansas. The Randolph County Heritage Museum in Pocahontas also keeps the story of William Baltz and the Wonder Horse alive. The museum has a display celebrating the history of the toy horse and some original Wonder Horses, although the first Wonder Horse, built by Baltz for his small son, isn’t in the museum.
Although you can no longer purchase a new Wonder Horse, spring rocking horses are still offered that closely resemble the original Wonder Horse. Vintage Wonder Horses can also be found for sale. Their plastic is a little faded, but the magic of the horse still lives.
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