Image - Colonial Games

The Public Room at the 1784 Tavern at Old Salem, NC

The Public Room at the 1784 Tavern in Old Salem is staged with the sort of things that were there in the last quarter of the 18th century. The inventory would include: newspapers, snacks, maps, Bibles, puzzles and games.

Most of the period games are recognized by current visitors to the tavern - dominoes, chess, and checkers. There are also games that are unfamiliar to most, such as The Royal and Most Pleasant Game of the Goose and Nine Mans Morris. It is to be noted that none of the games encourage gambling which was unwelcome in the tavern. 

The former game, Goose, is a precursor to Candy Land or Chutes and Ladders and may date back 2000 years. The latter game is a combination of checkers and tic-tac-toe.

You can find these games on the Internet. With the Internet as your resource you may learn, and perhaps purchase a two hundred plus year old game.

For Goose - click here.

For Nine Mans Morris - click here.