A summary of what games the
colonists played
By Daniel Charnis 7C3
ID2
I would like you to know that the
colonists had huge families, so
therefore it was not rare to find
games like “Boys vs. Girls” or “Family
vs. Family”
Believe it or not, games like checkers, fox and
geese, etc were played with corn as counters.
Corn was often grown in plantations, and since
there was plenty of it, they used it for games.
With that aside, lets take a look at what games
the colonists played!
Nine Man Morris was popular among the kids. Even though
most people played it with acorns on the dirt, it can be
played on paper. Using pennies, and sometimes corn, each
player uses a penny to line up with a dot. If you get three
pennies in a row, you capture the other players’ pennies.
You can block your opponent from getting three in a row by
putting a penny on the dot. To win the game, you have to
get the other player down to two pennies. Adults’
sometimes keep the loser’ pennies.
Blind Man's bluff was a family game. One person from the family (not
necessarily a male) was blindfolded. Even though anyone could be the
blindfolded person, it was mostly the adults, since the children could
easily get hurt. Usually, one member of the family supervised the
blindfolded person. It is traditional that the blindfolded person is to
spin five times before hunting. During this time, the other players
would run away. While he or she finished spinning, the other players
must stop in place. The players scream “Blind man’s BLUFF!”, and the
goal of the game was for the blindfolded person to find the other
players with vocal clues.
Jack straws was a very simple, yet very fun game.
The colonists would gather wooden sticks. One
person would drop all the sticks into one pile. One
person would try to take a stick out without moving
the others. If another stick moved, then the point
would not count. Then using your first stick, you pick
up the others. The person with the most stick wins.
Hide the Slipper was another basic, but very fun
game. Everyone (known as cobblers) except one
person would line up in a circle. The non-cobbler
would close his eyes, and the cobblers would pass
around a slipper. The non-cobbler would ask questions
about the slipper. He had three guesses. Once the
game was over, the person that had the slipper last
became the non-cobbler.
Blow out is one of the oldest games in history. Each player
gets five marbles. It is a two player game. The first player
tosses a marble, and tries to hit the opponents marble. If
he or she hits it, the shooter keeps the marble ,and that
person gets another opportunity to shoot again. If he or
she misses, the next person goes. The objective is to own
all of the players marbles’. Sometimes adults keep them for
life.
Even though the colonists and their families’ were
constantly working, they did find time to have fun.
Many of the fames they played were also originating
from their old homeland. They also learned/played
many games with the Indians when they first settled.
Some families created their own games, and passed
them down from generation to generation. Some of
the games evolved into others.
Colonial Family Picture: http://www.history.org/Almanack/images/famwdct.jpg
Nine Man Norris Picture- http://mahan.wonkwang.ac.kr/link/med/folk/game/9manmor.gif
Corn Picture- http://image.fg-a.com/food_0020w.gif
Blind Man’s Bluff Picture- http://www.1771.org/images/col_day/games_blind_man.gif
Jack Straws Picture- http://www.gutenberg.org/files/28129/28129-h/images/illus058a.png
Hide the slipper: http://www.vam.ac.uk/images/image/44340-large.jpg
Marbles picturehttp://thepqnation.com/livingwicked/wp-content/uploads/2009/04/marbles.jpg
Conclusions picturehttp://www.historicaltoymaker.com/09FamilyLife_colwb_colonial_playing_horse.jpgWorks
Cited
"17th-Century Pastimes and Sports (Colonial Times Reference, 3rd-8th Grade) TeacherVision.com." Teacher Lesson Plans, Printables & Worksheets by Grade or Subject TeacherVision.com. Web. 20 Dec. 2009.
<http://www.teachervision.fen.com/sports/activity/5772.html>.
"Colonial Games." Solomon Schechter Day School of Bergen County. Web. 20 Dec. 2009.
<http://www.ssdsbergen.org/Colonial/games.htm>.
Heinrichs, Ann. Maine (America the Beautiful. Third Series). New York: Children's, 2008. Print.
Morse, Earle, Alice. Home life in colonial days. Stockbridge, Mass: Berkshire
Traveller/Berkshire House, 1992. Print.
Morse, Earle, Alice. Home life in colonial days. Stockbridge, Mass: Berkshire
Traveller/Berkshire House, 1992. Print.