Card Games
While standard playing cards have been around for centuries, children's card games have only appeared relatively recently. Happy Families, for example, was first published in the 1860s.
Playing cards are thought to have originated in China around the 7th century and were introduced into Europe in the late 1300s. They were and continue to be used for gambling, games of skill and fortune telling. Playing cards aimed specifically at children did not appear until the 18th century. Unlike adult playing cards, children's cards generally have pictures on them, are educational, and were often published by the same companies that made board games.
Happy Families
Together with Snap, Donkey and Old Maid, Happy Families is a classic children's card game. Its roots may lie in the United States in a game called The Game of Trades, published by W. & S. B. Ives in the mid-19th century.
The Counties of England
The Counties of England game was the most popular and widely followed before the introduction of Happy Families. There are three different packs. Each pack has 61 cards, 13 of which bear the names of counties and principal towns, while the rest carry pictures of those towns.
Kings & Queens of England
At the beginning of the 20th century manufacturers started to use games in their advertising. Kings and Queens of England was published by the food and drinks manufacturer the Mazawattee Tea Company in about 1910.
Snap
John Jaques, a well known London maker and publisher of games, introduced the game of Snap in 1866, using illustrations of the 'grotesque characters' he had used in Happy Families.
