Jigsaw Puzzle History – an International Pastime

The jigsaw puzzle is one of the oldest forms of entertainment and dates back to the late 1700s. The jigsaw has passed through many stages of development to become today’s modern pastime. Jigsaw puzzles have a range of uses, from entertainment to education to physical and emotional therapy.

A Beginning as an Educational Tool

The forerunner of the modern jigsaw puzzle was invented in 1767 by John Spilsbury as a teaching device to help children to learn the geography of England and Wales. It was a wooden map with no interlocking pieces. In fact, interlocking pieces weren’t introduced to jigsaws until much later, with the invention of saws that could cut with the accuracy needed to produce the interlock. From this inauspicious beginning through the 1800s, jigsaw puzzles caught on and grew as a popular pastime.

Jigsaws: The New Favorite Parlor Game

By the early 1900s the jigsaw puzzle became all the rage with adults in both the US and the UK. Because of the cost of producing these wooden puzzles, they were primarily the domain of the wealthy, and jigsaw puzzles began to rival bridge and lawn bowling as parlor games. As puzzling grew, major game manufacturers, including Parker Brothers and Milton Bradley began to produce jigsaw puzzles.

Introduction of Shaped and Interlocking Pieces

The popularity of jigsaws in the first decade of the 1900s lead Parker Brothers to begin to develop puzzles with interlocking and shaped pieces. Also around this same time cardboard jigsaws began to be produced via die-cutting. Most manufacturers, however, stuck with making wooden puzzles, as the general belief was that there was no market for cheap, cardboard puzzles.

Depression-Era Growth of Jigsaws

With the advent of the Great Depression, demand for inexpensive cardboard, die-cut puzzles exploded. Families discovered that jigsawing was not only entertaining, but a great diversion from the stresses of life. Also, once complete, a jigsaw puzzle could be traded with a friend, continuing the trend of inexpensive entertainment.

A Boost from Advertising

At this time, companies also started using puzzles for promotional giveaways with many stores offering a puzzle with a purchase. At the height of the depression, in the early 1930s, the “Jig of the Week” was introduced and sold at newsstands. Several series became available and being the first to assemble that week’s puzzle resulted in bragging rights for the solver. Economic woes and the rise in popularity of inexpensive puzzles took its toll on the wooden puzzle makers, although some retained a loyal following.

Introduction of the Personalized Jigsaw

During the rise of cardboard puzzles a new manufacturer, Par Puzzles, came into popularity. These hand-cut, finely crafted puzzles were produced by brothers who catered to the affluent, including movie stars and royalty. Par’s claim to fame was personalized puzzles, often cut with their owner’s names as pieces.

Today’s Jigsaw Puzzles

Since the height of popularity during the depression, fascination with the jigsaw puzzle has ebbed and flowed. After World War II rising wages resulted in higher cost and lower sales of wooden jigsaw puzzles. At this same time, improvements in printing and reproduction of fine art on jigsaws resulted in increased sales of cardboard puzzled. Today, most puzzles are cardboard, but there are a handful of manufacturers still making high-quality, wooden jigsaw puzzles. A variety of puzzles are now available, from irregularly shaped puzzles, to doubled-sided jigsaws to 3D jigsaws. They continue to fascinate us and provide a way to bring people together with the common goal of being the one who puts in that last piece.



By: Robin Danek

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