And if not for a random dinner party in Philadelphia some 10 years later, The Landlord’s Game would have probably been lost to history. The game was not a huge success by any means, b ut it did grab the fancy of many left wing activists, collegians, and strangely a Quaker community in Atlantic City that modified the board to include the names of local streets. Magie kept improving the game and actually refiled a new patent in 1923. Satisfied with the results, Magie filed a patent for the game in March of 1903. The second set of rules were designed so the goal was to create monopolies and crush your opponents. One was altruistic in which all players were rewarded when wealth was created. She designed two sets of rules for the game. Players earned wages for labor as they travelled the square layout, and if they made it all the way around, they passed the mother earth square and were awarded $100 for their labors. It had a public park, a poor house, and public utilities for water and light. The board has places to sleep and pay rent. So in 1903 she created The Landlord’s Game as a way to show the devastating economic impact monopolies had on a citizen and the economy. She believed in a single tax theory and wanted to design a tool to explain and teach the theory. Unmarried and a political activist, she wanted a way to get her message to the people.

Lizzy Magie (1866-1948) was someone who abhorred monopolies. It wasn’t until a dinner party 30 years after it’s invention that Monopoly rolled its way into American culture. And while it’s modern history as a beloved traditional board game is well known, the first 30 years of Monopoly’s existence is one of almost complete disinterest.

Shrouded in myth, mystery, and a fair bit of deceit, Monopoly is probably the world’s most recognized board game.

Original monopoly board st charles