The Horatio Colony Museum: Collections of historical & artistic interest.

Horatio Colony possibly assembled one of the first extensive Cribbage board collections in the country, collecting over seventy Cribbage boards in the 1940’s and 50’s. This was perhaps his favorite area of collecting.

The Cribbage board collection is eclectic and more of a survey, rather than focusing on one style, manufacturer or country. Although there are some pieces from the North America and Asia, most were made in England from the late 19^th to early 20^th centuries. Some examples from the collection:

‘Far East’ Boards: Two boards in the collection are representative of those made in Japan and Hong Kong immediately after World War II.

They are carved from ivory into wedge shapes with a small ivory screw peg to cover the storage opening for the board pegs. Floral designs and dragons are carved into the ivory along the peg board and across the bottom. Many of these were made by craftsmen and were intended as souvenirs.

'Prisoner of War' Boards: In the 19th century, English prisoners of war were allowed to make items, which were sold to help finance their necessities. Many items were carved from bone remnants from meals. One such board was possibly made by a French prisoner. The box has a sliding peg board top, totally made of bone. The vertical sides of the box are covered with flattened pieces of straw of varying shades of brown, to simulate wood inlay.

This board was made in the mid-1800’s, in the form of box with a sliding top. The box is wood with carved and perforated bone applied to the surfaces with the Cribbage peg board glued to the top. The box stores a complete set of miniature playing cards, dominoes and Cribbage pegs – all made of bone!

Exotics: Some of the more unusual include: a cribbage board fashioned from the wooden butt of a rifle; a ‘Tiki” board made in a triangular format from elaborately carved mahogany with abalone inlay – the carving depicts the face of an ancestor or god with a protruding tongue; a whole walrus tusk with

scrimshaw patterns of fish, a seal and a walrus; an elaborately carved box, (seen right) with a slant top and a cribbage board of inlay ivory panels, which opens to form a portable writing desk and is possibly of English origin.

Tunbridge Ware Boards: In the collection are eleven Tunbridge Ware boards; the name refers to natural-colored wood mosaic inlay items made in Tunbridge Wells, England, from approximately 1820 to 1920. Tunbridge Wells was a fashionable spa, which attracted visitors who wanted to take home souvenirs of their visit. The area had long been known for its woodworkers.

These local craftsman developed their products to suit the tourist, making a range of items for purchase, including toys, punch ladles, dressing boxes, snuff boxes, tea chests, miniature tea sets and cribbage boards. The items were made from local woods such as yews, cherry and holly. Later items incorporated exotic woods and ivory inlays.

English Pub Boards: English public houses, or "pubs", were drinking establishments, amply scattered about cities, towns, villages and throughout the country side along well traveled routes. They were frequented by workers and simple folks and became the place to drink an ale, have tea or get a meal of pub food, as well as a place to gather and socialize. Saloons were more up-scale watering holes for the wealthy. Even more exclusive were club rooms which required a membership to gain entrance. The well-to-do would sometime frequent a pub but the typical pub clientele would never go to a saloon.

Since Cribbage was the most popular game in England and the only card game that could legally be played for money in English pubs, many pubs and saloons had cribbage boards.

Like the furnishings, the cribbage boards found in the more affluent clubs and saloons were more finely designed than those in the pubs.

Manufactured Boards: American made boards include:

Meriden Britannia Company in Meriden, Connecticut, between 1852 and 1898. The board is a box with a pull-out drawer, made of silver plate with an embossed design on the sides.

C.W. Le Count Company of South Norwalk, Connecticut, 1830 to c. 1920. The board has a walnut base with a nickel plated steel top perforated with holes for Cribbage scoring. It has a side storage pocket with slider .

A Hedgehog Board made by John Gill Manufacturing of New York City, made in the mid to late 1800’s.

“Priest’s Indigestion Powder” board made by the American Manufacturing Concern, Falconer, New York, c. 1920.

C.W. Le Count Company of South Norwalk, Connecticut, 1830 to c. 1920. A game set in a leather carrying case complete with two decks of playing cards.

To view a slide show of more boards from the collection, click here. To print an expanded version of this article, plus bibliography, click here. For more information on the web:
www.cribbage.org
www.tradgames.org.uk/games/Cribbage.htm