Did you know that the Lego sets you and your children love to play and build things with were the brainchild of one genius of a Danish man who originally made and sold ironing boards, stepladders, and wooden toys? Ole Kirk Christiansen established his humble woodworking business in the little village of Billund, where he and his son Godtfred, who was only 12 years old in 1932, started on constructing their dream into a reality.Naming the Business.Two years after the business was established, the Christiansens named their products Lego, a word coined from "leg godt," a Danish phrase that means "play well." Business was flourishing for the Christiansens, but tragedy struck in 1942 when a blazing fire burned the entire Lego factory down.This did not dampen the family's spirits, though, as soon after, they were producing wooden bricks they called Automatic Binding Bricks.Not exactly the most attractive name in the world, but these are the predecessors to the modern Lego sets.Shift from Wooden Bricks to Plastic.The original wooden Automatic Binding Bricks had pegs on top and hollow bottoms.By the early 1950s, the Christiansens were the biggest toy manufacturers in Denmark, having been the first to buy a plastic injection-molding machine for toy-making.Ole, the original founder, was too old to man the business, so Godtfred took over and decided the shift from wooden bricks to plastic.However, the Automatic Binding Bricks still lacked one quality that makes it different from the present Lego brick we all know and love.The Stud-and-Tube Design.1958 was a year to remember for everyone in the Lego family.Ole Christiansen died and the Lego brick we have come to know so well came into existence during that very same year.The company had finally gotten it right, putting studs on the top of the brick and matching tubes at the bottom.They had this design patented and are using it up to the present.A Lego brick made today could match a classic made in 1958.In 1960, another fire ravaged the Lego factory and they decided to stop producing wooden toys altogether.Wheel Manufacturers, Too!Did you know that Lego also produces the highest number of wheels in the world? Lego wheels, that is.In 1961, they manufactured their first wheel and are still manufacturing over 300 million Lego wheels today.These are added into 37,000 Lego sets every hour with thousands of other Lego pieces.Years later, in 1967, Lego released Lego Duplo, which is a larger variety more suitable for younger children.Lego Sets Everywhere.Since then, Lego has made its mark in the lives of both children and adults as one of the best toys ever.The sets began to include mini-figures who had different skin colors, facial expressions, and hairstyles.The company began releasing sets based on different themes, like cities, medieval ages, even dolls, and licensed sets like Harry Potter and Star Wars.
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