Spelling Board

PeriodCirca 1886 - 1901

(not assigned)Milwaukee, Wisconsin, U.S.A.

MediumPine, basswood, steel wire

Dimensions9.5 × 13.5 × 1.13 in. (24.1 × 34.3 × 2.9 cm)

Signed"PAT. FEB. 16, '86" stamped at center top and bottom of board surface.

ClassificationsToys & Games

Credit LineMuseum Collection

Object number2021.509

DescriptionA spelling board game, consisting of a pair of wooden panels glued together, with beveled edges and clipped corners. Fifty-six circular letter tiles, each with a narrow groove on the underside, fit into a rounded track within the board. The tiles can slide around the track path, aligning with a narrow steel wire fastened along the innermost track length. The red painted and varnished tiles are printed in black with letters of the alphabet as well as the "&" puncuation, allowing the player to create words and phrases by moving the tiles around the track. The upper board is painted bright yellow with florid scrolls along the edges of the panel.
NotesCarpenter and patternmaker Alonzo F. Smith (1850 - 1917) received patent number 336,266 for his simply named Spelling Board on February 16, 1886. Smith's Spelling Board allowed children (and probably quite a few adults) the opportunity to spell out words and phrases using the circular tiles by moving them along a track. Smith was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. One of nine children, Alonzo worked with his father, who made parts for baby carriages and bicycles. Smith married Sarah Watrous, and the couple had four children. The year after receiving his successful patent for his Spelling Board, Smith founded the Instructive Toy Company. He designed a companion Cardinal Number Board, featuring moveable number tiles on a yellow and blue wooden board. The company also developed the Spelling Stick and the Puzzle Card Case. In 1900, Smith and his family moved to Los Angeles, California. Smith sold the rights to the Spelling Board to the New York toy company Selchow & Righter, which produced the boards up until 1923.

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