ONLINE EXHIBIT
Board Games of the Barnes Museum

Follow along as we continue to add board games from our collection to this new online exhibit. 
What games are you playing at home?  Have you played any of these? 
​Are you playing games at home with your family?

Send us your photos
​
Crossing The Ocean
Published by Parker Brothers
Salem, MA
1893

The rules are simple - start with your pawn on one of the four red dots on the left side of the board.  Spin the spinner and move your pawn as many spaces as you'd like in the direction indicated by your spin. 

Here's the catch, you can't move through obstructions (ships or other players pawns) during your move. 

​The goal is to reach as many of the red dots scattered throughout the board as possible.  Each red dot has a monetary amount.  First player to reach $100,000 is the winner!

​Uniquely, the playing board of this game is the inner bottom of the box itself.   

​Parker Brothers, originally called the George S. Parker Company, was founded in Salem Massachusetts in 1883 by George S. Parker.  The company changed its name to the now well-known Parker Brothers in 1888 when George's brother Charles joined the business.  

Crossing the Ocean was copyrighted in 1893, five years after Charles Parker joined the business and five years before a third brother, Edward Parker signed on in 1898.
[newenglandhistoricalsociety.com]
​Prisoner's Base
Published by Parker Brothers
Salem, MA
1896

A game for two players, the objective is to circle your opponents base twice.  But be careful!  Your pawns can be captured and sent to prison.  To free them you'll need to reach the prison without being captured.  

The game is won when a player gets two of their pawns, or one pawn twice, around the opponents base or if a player captures all four of their opponents pawns. 

Pawns can be moved forward or backwards along the snaked pathway.

As with Crossing the Ocean, the playing board of this game is the inner bottom of the box itself. 

Both Crossing the Ocean and Prisoner's Base are from the early years of the Parker Brother's company.  Bradley Barnes, was born in 1883 and would have been 13 when this game was published.  
​
Tiddledy Winks
Manufacturer Unknown
Circa 1890/1891

Tiddledy Winks began as an adult parlor game in Victorian England. Joseph Fincher filed for the original English patent in 1888.  Competition was fierce however, and soon many versions of the game were created.  Eventually the game was produced for the U.S. market and by the 1890s it was a popular craze with adults and children.  

The basic game is played by shooting winks into the pot with a squidger.  Prevent your opponents scoring points by squopping their winks - or shooting your winks on top of theirs.  To win,  get all of your color winks into the pot or score more points by squopping your opponent's pieces.  Tiddledy Wink tournaments are held to this day. 

Official tournament rules differ than the basic rules and are quite strategic. 
[http://tiddlywinks.org/]   
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tiddlywinks]
Yachting or off Sandy Hook Light
Manufactured by CM Co.
Circa late 1800s

A classic race game, the object is to move your yacht around the marked path and reach Sandy Hook Light first.  Each player spins the spinner and moves their yacht the number of spaces indicated.  

Not to be confused with the village of Sandy Hook, Connecticut, this game is themed for Sandy Hook Lighthouse located in Highlands, New Jersey.
Grandma's (Improved Game of)
Useful Knowledge
Manufactured by The McLoughlin Bros., NY
Circa 1860s/1870s

Grandma's Game of Useful Knowledge is one of a series of "grandma" trivia based games published by the McLoughlin Bros. Co. in the later half of the 19th century.  

Milton Bradley created a very similar game in 1910 and would later purchase the McLoughlin Bros. Co. in 1920.  

Game play is simple.  Players each take a stack of cards placing them face down in front of them.  One player is designated as the proctor.  A player would flip over their top card and hand it to the proctor.  Each card has a number and a question.  The proctor would then reference the number listed in Grandma's Useful Knowledge booklet and ask the player the printed question.  If the player answered the question correctly, they win the card.  The player with the most cards/correct answers at the end of the game wins!
[https://allaboutfunandgames.com/old-milton-bradley-grandma%E2%80%99s-game-of-useful-knowledge]
Polly Want A Cracker
Manufactured by J.H. Singer, N.Y.
Circa 1870-1900

The J.H. Singer company is well known for its intricate lithography and detailed board game covers.  Polly Want A Cracker is a perfect example of this type of production.  

A two player game (although shown here with a third color option), the goal is to cover as many parts of Polly as possible.  A player would spin the dial and place one of their ten pieces on the corresponding Polly part - Legs, Claws, Bill, etc.  If the dial stops on a part that has already been covered by a player's piece, the opponent calls out "Cracker!"  The player's piece must them be left on a cracker square and is counted as lost.  The player who has covered the most Polly parts after placing all ten pieces wins the game.
[https://thebiggamehunter.com/main-menu-bar/history/the-early-game-makers/]
Game of Fish Pond
Manufactured by Westcott Bros., Seneca Falls, N.Y.
Circa 1890

In 1872, Henry Westcott and his two sons established Westcott Brothers, a company which manufactured wood based products.  It should come as no surprise then that this game is made of wood!  In 1890, Henry Westcott retired.  The company changed it's name to Westcott Bros.  and expanded their products to include wooden toys.  This game was produced between 1890-1894 when Bradley Barnes, being a young boy, collected most of the games shown in this exhibit.  

The Westcott company would change its name numerous times over the next century and is today owned by the Acme United Corporation.  

Today, Westcott products focus on everyday items such as rulers, scissors and pencil sharpeners.
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Westcott_Rule_Company]