There was fierce bidding for The Brer Fox & Brer Rabbit, which featured in a book sale at Thomson Roddick Auctioneers in Carlisle last Thursday.
It was printed and published by the Newbie Games Co. (Annan) and was based on the 1904 US “Landlords Game” (patented by Lizzie Magie, a follower of the political economist Henry George). The game was first introduced to the UK when produced in 1913 by the local Liberal party committee, thus the use of Lord George as the reforming fox, under its new name but was manifestly the same game.
A spokesman for the auction house said: “Various successors to the Landlords Game led to the first publication of Monopoly. Brer Fox an` Brer Rabbit apparently was sold for a nominal one shilling and was obtainable from Miss Clarke, Newbie, Annan.”
