Teaching Success Through Play: American Board And Table Games, 1840-1900

Magazine Antiques, Dec, 2001 by Jennifer Jensen

In 1843 W. and S. B. Ives of Boston introduced Mansion of Happiness (see Pl. IV), one of the first board games published in the United States. The goal of the game was to be the first player to reach the "Mansion of Happiness," or heaven, by passing the virtues and vices of mankind along a sixty-six-space road of life. Fifty-five years later Parker Brothers of Salem, Massachusetts, published The Game of Playing Department Store (Pl. III), in which each player attempted to amass the most material goods during a shopping expedition. At first appearance, these two games have little in common but both taught nineteenth-century American children the value of success as it was interpreted at different times during the century.

In the late 1700s and early 1800s, success in

The new United States was equated with basic survival and godliness of spirit. Life centered on the home as the heart of economic production and of family community, and from the time they could walk, children were expected to participate in the family's daily work. Strict guidelines were enforced regarding their behavior, and transgressions were swiftly punished, for it was widely believed that children could only develop into productive adults with the firmest guidance. (1) These views left the average American child little time for leisure pursuits and education. Games were played, but not solely by children. The whole family took part in draughts (checkers), backgammon, and cards (which had been produced in Europe from medieval times).

By the 1830s, the hardships of the colonial era and early Republic had given way to increasing prosperity. Urbanization and industrialization transformed the political, economic, and social life of the United States, moving families into cities and changing the roles children played within the home. Moreover, mechanization reduced the hours worked by some laborers, increasing the time available for other pursuits. The home was removed as the center of work and became primarily associated with leisure activities and education. The definition of success shifted from mere survival to social advancement through education and religion.

Attitudes toward children also changed. Adults began to view childhood as an important period of life during which play, disobedience, and comical behavior were seen as natural preparations for future responsibilities. (2) Popular images of children during this period depict innocent creatures born without faults of character, (3) but society also recognized that children could be mischievous, curious, and impulsive. In order to grow into moral and industrious adults, they needed a stimulating environment that was also safe and protective. Parents, particularly mothers, became responsible for providing this environment. Since it was believed that the roots of all future actions were found in childhood, the primary concern of mothers was bringing up children who were literate and moral. Strict regulations regarding children's behavior were relaxed, but diligence was expected in learning, religious piety, and personal appearance. For the first time, most children were also introduced to the entirely new concept of unregimented, unrestrained leisure. After lessons and chores were completed, the remainder of children's time was free for whatever activities they chose to pursue.

The number of goods manufactured solely for the use of children rose dramatically Educators stressed the importance of having children engaged in amusements that were morally uplifting and instructional, so these new games and toys overwhelmingly emphasized spiritual values and literacy. Parents and teachers hoped that they would give children useful skills and shape their future conduct. Victorian nurseries were filled with toys that were supposed to develop the manual skills of boys and the domestic skills of girls and to impart moral lessons to both.

These new attitudes combined with a burgeoning middle class and advances in papermaking, printing technology, and transportation that made printed materials more affordable and assured a lucrative market for board and table games. (4) In these games we can trace Americans' changing attitudes toward the definition of success. Since instruction was foremost in the minds of parents, the earliest games were uniformly didactic, imparting basic knowledge, teaching skills, and moralizing, albeit in a form that was intended to be palatable or even fun for children. Many were based on history and geography while others had biblical connotations that it was hoped would foster Christian goodness.

One of the earliest manufacturers of children's games in the United States was W. and S. B. Ives, the makers of Mansion of Happiness. A typical virtue-versus-vice race game, Mansion of Happiness was based on an earlier English game of the same name produced by Laurie and Whittle of London in 1800. The English game, in turn, was based on The Game of the Goose, which originated in Italy and was registered in Stationer's Hall in London in l597. (5) The goal of the game is to be the first to reach the seat of happiness-heaven--in the center of the board. A player spins the spinner and moves along a path on which more than half the spaces are illustrated with virtues and vices (see P1. IV). A player landing on a virtue moves forward and on a vice, backward, often all the way back to the start, depending on the severity of the infraction. Success, in the case of this game, was attained through virtues such as piety honesty, and charity and the avoidance of idleness, breaking the Sabbath, and other lapses in judgmen t. This idea was clearly laid out in the directions to the game: