Touring
“Touring”, the Great Automobile Card Game, © 1926 Parker Brothers, Salem, Massachusetts.
Parker Brothers 1926 edition
The Great Automobile Card Game “Touring” simulates the hazards of an automobile race with cards representing distances in miles and delays due to adverse events such as no gasoline, puncture, collision, etc. “Touring” was first published by the Touring Card Company in 1906. It was sold to Wallie Dorr in 1915►
The game was then sold on to Parker Bros in 1924. The edition shown here is © 1926 Parker Brothers, Salem, Massachusetts, who also had offices in New York & London.
It must have been very popular as there were further editions in 1947 and 1958, all of which were “improved”. The game also morphed into “Mille Bournes” on the continent. The object of the game is to score 110 miles by completing a set of mileage cards whilst trying to obstruct opponents with Delay cards.
Above: red box from the 1920s.
Above: coloured version of the box from later edition c.1937.
Above: The Great Automobile Card Game “Touring”, © 1926 Parker Brothers, Salem, Massachusetts. 99 cards in box + rules. The illustrations have been updated and distances increased to keep pace with the improvement of automobiles. All images courtesy Rex Pitts.
See Original Patent Registration, 1906►
Later Editions
By Rex Pitts (1940-2021)
Member since January 30, 2009
Rex's main interest was in card games, because, he said, they were cheap and easy to get hold of in his early days of collecting. He is well known for his extensive knowledge of Pepys games and his book is on the bookshelves of many.
His other interest was non-standard playing cards. He also had collections of sheet music, music CDs, models of London buses, London Transport timetables and maps and other objects that intrigued him.
Rex had a chequered career at school. He was expelled twice, on one occasion for smoking! Despite this he trained as a radio engineer and worked for the BBC in the World Service.
Later he moved into sales and worked for a firm that made all kinds of packaging, a job he enjoyed until his retirement. He became an expert on boxes and would always investigate those that held his cards. He could always recognize a box made for Pepys, which were the same as those of Alf Cooke’s Universal Playing Card Company, who printed the card games. This interest changed into an ability to make and mend boxes, which he did with great dexterity. He loved this kind of handicraft work.
His dexterity of hand and eye soon led to his making card games of his own design. He spent hours and hours carefully cutting them out and colouring them by hand.
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