Monopoly is certainly a game which has withstood the test of time. First being sold widespread in 1935, Monopoly has risen to be the most successful table game in the United States. It was in the 1930s, though, when the legend of Monopoly began. The legend, which has been credited to Charles B. Darrow, who patented the game in 1933.


Original Monopoly set printed and sold by Carles Darrow in Philadelphia
A 1935 patent by Charles Darrow shows the layout of Monopoly in the 1930s, a square game board with 40 spaces and 8 possible monopolies. A possible monopoly is a series of 2 or 3 spaces of the same color where if you have all of the spaces you can add houses and hotels to boost the value of the monopoly. The more houses and hotels on a space, the more damage you can do to an opponent when he/she lands on it. As well as the monopoly sections there are 4 railroads, a Water-Works space, an Electric Company space, a Jail space, a Go To Jail space, a Go space, a Free Parking space, an Income Tax and Luxury Tax space, and 3 Chance and Community Chest spaces. If a player lands on a Chance or Community Chest space he/she is to pick one of the corresponding cards and do as it says.

All of the 40 spaces are rectangular, connected and trace around the side of the square board, forming the moving area for the playing pieces. Also, in the center of the board is the word "Monopoly" printed in big, bold, capital letters. In the upper left corner, below and beside the playing spaces is a space designated for the Community Chest cards. A space is also provided for the Chance cards in the lower right corner(above and beside the playing spaces). The game includes 2 dice, fake money, property cards(acuired with the acquired property - displaying rent and mortgage value), a number of houses and hotels, and six playing pieces: a thimble, a wagon, an iron, a hat, a boot, and a boat. I do not know exactly what type of material was used for the game in the thirties and forties, but I know what is used today. The board, box, and property cards are cardboard, the money paper, the playing pieces metal, and the houses and hotels plastic.

Monopoly is a game that, according to Jackson, can be said to have three stages: "early - in which the players advance around the board, buying unowned property; middle - in which all property has been acquired by someone, and players trade, consolidate their holdings, and scramble to build on their monopolies; and late - characterized by the existence of developed monopolies belonging to each player, many hotels, and possible building shortages"(Jackson 57). The ultimate goal of Monopoly is to cause the other players to go bankrupt.

Monopoly allows you to participate in the real estate market even if you are a child or an unwealthy person. Since it is a game that became popular at the end of the depression era, Robert Barton, George parker's son-in-law, felt that it not only functioned as entertainment but as a way to "let people fantasize that they could win in the real estate market"(Costello 62). In that sense, Monopoly also functioned as a relief from the troubled times of the 1930s and 40s.


Parker Brother's 1930's with metal pieces


Although this is a later game, early boards tend to have no illustration on the Community Chest space and the Community Chest and Chance cards have no illustration.

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