[1] The company was founded in 1929 by Donald F. Duncan Sr. and purchased the Flores Yo-Yo Company from Pedro Flores, who brought the yo-yo to the United States from the Philippines.

[2][3][4] Duncan popularized the yo-yo through competitions; it was promoted in publications by William Randolph Hearst in exchange for a requirement that contestants had to sell subscriptions to Hearst newspapers as a condition of entry.

[2] In 1965, a federal court ruled that Duncan did not have exclusive rights to the word "yo-yo" because the word had become a part of common speech.

[6][7] In 1999, the Duncan yo-yo was inducted into the Strong National Museum of Play's National Toy Hall of Fame.

[8] In 2017, the makers of Rubik's Cube sued Duncan Toys Company over their "Quick Cube", alleging that the toy "mimics the features and overall appearance" of the Rubik's Cube puzzle.