Another Peter-Austin Mystery: Etch A Sketch

Back in November when I was investigating the Peter-Austin / Kenner Girder & Panel Set mystery I came across a Peter-Austin manufactured Etch A Sketch on eBay. My sister and I had one of these when we were kids. I clearly remember that distinctive box. This particular one is in excellent condition: still works, no damage, and the box is in good shape. I plopped down $40 and bought it. No shipping on this one as luckily enough it was being sold by Toy Heaven in nearby Smiths Falls - ok, to be picky, there was gasoline consumption involved :-)

What's the mystery? First, the Etch A Sketch Wikipedia entry makes no mention of Peter-Austin manufacturing this toy, only Ohio Art. The Wikipedia Talk section for the Etch A Sketch entry notes that this statement was removed:

Though, Austin R. Kelk - fmr. Chairman of the Kelton Corporation - also claims to be the creater of the Etch-a-Sketch.

because:

Google shows no non-Wikipedia-derived hits for "Austin R. Kelk"; Kelk etch-a sketch; Kelk Kelton corporation. There's also no mention of any claim from Kelk on any of the linked resources. Kelton Corporation appear to have marketed etch-a-sketch in Canada, but that's all.

Here's where things get a bit mysterious. On the back of my box it says,

ETCH-A-SKETCH
Patented Canada 1960
Great Britain
Patent No. 915,371
Trade Mark Canada
and Great Britain

There's no mention of a US patent, and all it says about licensing is this:

Mfd. in Canada under License by Kelton Corporation
For Peter Austin Mfg. Co. Toronto 

On the back of the Etch A Sketch though the story gets a little more complicated, and has this to add:

No. 505 "Etch-A-Sketch" R Magic Screen

Made under license French Patent

U.S. Patent Pending

Canadian Patent Pending

Trademark Reg. Canada and U.S.A.

That Wikipedia article says that Etch A Sketch was invented in France by André Cassagnes in the 1950s, and was first publicly shown at the Nuremberg Toy Fair in 1959. Ohio Arts was said to have taken a pass on the toy at that show, but when they "saw it a second time", they went for it. I don't know what happened between 1959 and 1960, but from what's printed on the box it makes it seem like this is a purely Canadian product, but looking at the back of the toy, one can see that there's probably more to the story. 

Hieroglyphics adorn the box

I looked up Canadian patent 915,371, and apparently it's for a Feather Plucking Device ! A search of UK patents yields nothing for that number. I tried doing various general searches for Canadian, UK, and French patents, but couldn't find one. Maybe it has been bought and sold over the years? No doubt, answering these questions are what keeps patent lawyers employed, and I don't plan on trying to find the patents :-)

To finish, according to our friends at Wikipedia, these days Etch A Sketch is owned by another Canadian company, Spin Master, who's also headquartered in Toronto. I suspect there's an interesting story of Etch A Sketch's journey from France in 1959, to Peter-Austin in 1960, through Ohio Art, to Spin Master in 2021. The question is: Is there anybody still around who knows what it is?

[28 December 2021 afternoon update: Vince did what I should have done and found this post that lists the various Etch A Sketch patents. Much thanks Vince !]