In this post I am going to be dumping references to bagatelle from some newspapers. Many of these clips I'll later sift into the more overarching posts on this topic. (will this post disappear if I integrate stuff into older posts on these topics? Unsure...)
Below the cut you'll find information on bagatelle, russian billiards, bar billiards, etc
Doing a search through New York Historic Newspapers, the earliest mention of bagatelle to mean a game (on that site) seems to be 1819.
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| 1819-08-17 Lansingburgh Gazette (if I go to your house and you have bagatelles and aeolian harps, I'll be very impressed) |
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| 1819-12-29 New-York evening post S. Carter making bagatelle tables (which people feel superior to those imported ones! ooo la la!) at 49 Bowery |
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| 1821-06-21 New-York evening post |
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| 1821-11-16 New-York evening post mentions "bagatelles from London" |
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| 1822-11-07 bagatelle New-York evening post John Phyfe Jr worked in (was a 'Turner' of) Silver, Ivory, Brass, and Wood. Sells at 30 Barclay Street, and mentions ivory bagatelle balls and cups. |
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| 1824-08-02 bagatelle New-York evening post that's a lot of ivory, and a lot of dead elephants, sadly. |
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| balls by Brunswick Balke Collender. Apparently a tusk could just produce 3 billiard balls. (via) |
This article is cute because it talks of how (english) bagatelle is an old person's game that the youngsters weren't appreciating.
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| 1909-07-13 Tacoma Daily News |
Clippings From Europe:
There is a lot of hearsay about Count d'Artgois' chateaux Bagatelle. The whole thing about it a "birthplace of pinball"? Oh I wish we had specific citations. The stories about it construction timeline do have evidence.
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| 1777-11-22 The Ipswich Journal |
I think there is an understanding that 9-hole bagatelle came early 1800s, and if so that would upend some parts of the evolution that are currently presumed.
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| 1816-03-13 The Bury and Norwich Post advertisement that includes "Bagatelle boards" |
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| 1818-12-15 The Times "new-invented bagatelle boards" |
While we later take "French Bagatelle" to imply a type of board with the pins, "French Bagatelle" could also refer to bagatelle played French rules, as in, the English 9-hole bagatelle board (assumed) played with a French variant of rules.
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| 1845-05-04 1845-05-4 The Era Sun |
To contrast, I believe the French Bagatelle referred to here would be the kind with the slant and the pins, as it is played by children with marbles.
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| 1850-04-19 The Morning Chronicle |
The English Bagatelle board is noted here as part of the billiards tradition
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| 1854-05-13 The Guardian |
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| 1854-09-02 The Guardian |
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| 1856-05-16 Freeport Daily Journal |
This advertisement is useful as it distinguishes between a French Bagatelle table and a regular slate bagatelle table (similar to billiards, which also used slate)
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| 1858-02-9 The Age |
This is one designed to drive me mad. A list of "Evening Amusements", which includes not only Cockamaroo, but "American, Chinese, and Japanese Billiards"!
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| 1861-12-27 The Caledonian Mercury |
I like this clipping because it describes 4 different bagatelles of different features and stature:
- A birch bagatelle table, 10 ft by 3 ft 4 in, with one circular end, slate bed, 3 pockets, 2 inch balls, &c.
- Also a bagatelle table, 9 ft by 3 ft, slate bed, two pockets, 1 7/8 inch balls, &c.
- A smaller bagatelle table, 8 ft 7 in by 9 ft 9 in, slate bed, 1 3/4 inch balls, etc.
- A very good second-hand bagatelle table, 10 ft by 3ft 6 in, nearly new, with two circular ends, slate bed, 2 inch balls, etc
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| 1868-02-28 The Hull Packet and East Riding Times |
French bagatelle mentioned. I read this as saying they had secret springs under the playfield to influence the ball's descent, i.e. a carnival game that is run by cheats! Who would have thought?
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| 1869-10-15 The Freeman's Journal (Dublin, Ireland) |
Sometimes it can be useful to document the makers, like George Collins here
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| 1870-12-24 Western Mail |
Who is also joined by Edgar Hulbert here
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| 1870-12-28 Western Mail |
Two legal cases involving "French bagatelle". The first doesn't go into many details, but also mentions Devil Amongst The Tailors, aka Toupie Hollaindaise.
The second article refers to it as a "game of chance". When told they can't use it for betting at all, one person is quoted as replying "Play for amusement!" Then what is the use of having the board here?"
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| 1878-05-25 Hampshire Telegraph and Naval Chronicle |
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| 1878-09-23 Daily News |
Another nod to the usage of "Japanese Billiards", but no description
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| 1878-12-05 The Clyde Enterprise |
This references French Bagatelle... as a "wheel of chance"? Unsure if it's just a turn of phrase, but perhaps just entirely incorrect in its labeling.
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| 1879-11-27 Hartford Courant |
This is an early mention of "American Bagatelle"
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| 1881-05-25 Glasgow Herald |
From an auction list: "Also, one Bensinger's American bagatelle and Carom-bolette Table, Brunswick & Blake makers, with cues and ivory balls complete."
One of the rare times to see carombolette mentioned!
But is it one table, or two? Is Bensinger's a maker, or perhaps a dealer? Brunswick and Blake are obviously makers. How is it both American Bagatelle and carombolette?
This is a choice auction though, as the next line reads "And one large size pigeon-hole Billiard Table, with outfit complete."
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| 1883-06-02 The Morning Astorian |
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| 1883-09-05 The Hampshire Advertiser |
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| 1886-11-27 The Yorkshire Herald |
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| 1892-12-17 The Hampshire Advertiser |
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| 1892-12-31 The Bristol Mercury and Daily Post Western Countries and South Wales Advertiser |
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| 1893-09-29 Birmingham Daily Post also mentions Devil Among The Tailors |
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| 1894-06-23 The Yorkshire Herald and the York Herald |
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| 1896-01-19 Lloyd s Weekly Flagging this one a VERY IMPORTANT as it describes the French Bagtelle as "worked with a spring and a marble" |
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| 1897-03-17 The Derby Mercury this gives us a clue as to how they were play french bagatelle: I would assume "140 up" would mean the first to 140 total wins. |
Now on to.... American Bagatelle which sounds suspiciously like the French Bagatelle.
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| 1897-12-21 The Sydney Morning Herald |
Russian Billiards notes
This 1845 article names Russian Billiards amongst a list of toys, including bagatelle, at the end of a long list.
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| 1845-01-01 Charleston Courier |
Also from 1845, this auction notice lists "Modern Russian Billiard Table, (Lynn's patent,) of beautiful Rosewood, on Turned Fluted Legs and Castore, in excellent condition;"
I have to wonder if it's a billiard table from Russia, thought the "Lynn's patent" makes me think it might be a bit more than that...
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| 1845-11-14 Liverpool Mercury |
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| 1853-06-27 Pittsburgh Daily Post |
This clipping states "Russian Billiard Table, commonly called Pigeon Hole,"
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| 1864-12-31 The Daily Bee |
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| 1869-07-10 The New York Herald |
This classified ad mentions a mahogany Russian Billiard Table by Burroughs and Watts
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| 1887-01-27 Birmingham Daily Post |
This is a fascinating article on the origins of something called Bumblepuppy. The story is that when skittles (bowling) was banned people would instead bowl marbles from 5 feet away into what is described as a pin bagatelle board.
The article denotes it as "a species of bagatelle or Russian billiards," linking Russian billiards to being a pin bagatelle. I'm unsure of what the specific connotation of Russian billiards is, but I wonder if it is something like denoting a spring plunger, versus the cue of what they call bagatelle?
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| 1898-07-18 The Pall Mall Gazette |
It should be noted that there was a toy called "Russian billiard or billiard Nicholas" that came out in 1900, but it is described as a reverse Hungry Hungry Hippo done with squeezing air pumps. You know, in case this comes up in future research?
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| 1900-12-10 Buffalo Evening News |
This 1910 article claims a record for Russian billiards as "making fifteen consecutive points", which has me believe this reference to Russian billiards is to a proper billiards game. As we'll see in the next article, this is most likely an early version of snooker
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| 1910-12-08 The Evening Mail |
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| 1916-09-08 Salt Lake Telegram |
The rules described above do a good job mirroring those of snooker, albeit with a few minor differences.
Snooker goes back to the late 1900s, but things moved slower back then and perhaps it took until the 1910s to truly make a splash in that part of the USA. I am not sure why they call it Russian Billiards....
The earliest I found of Russian Billiards in the proper bar billiards form is from 1933. A "ninepin" is a like a bowling pin / skittle.
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| 1933-10-13 The Evening Herald |
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| 1933-12-09 Greenville Daily Advocate |
This article highlights the rising popularity of Bar Billiards, which it refers to as "the Russian billiard tables". Part of the credit for the popularity is given due to "high taxes on billiard tables in Belgium".
It is referred to as a cross between billiards and Japanese billiards. What does that imply exact? Does Japanese billiards use skittles? Does it have the troughs to bring balls to the front?
It says the game has "sprung into extreme popularity in France and Belgium".
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| 1933-10-14 |
Japanese Billiards
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| 1878-12-05 The Clyde Enterprise |
a clue to the rules and play of Japanese billiards? I'm sure a billiards history fan will be able to parse this far better than I.
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| 1896-12-30 The Fall River Daily Herald |
Miscellaneous
Sizes...
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| 1885 Burroughes & Watts Catalogue Billiards - we have bagatelle prices and size options |
How about some fresh bagatelle photos?
This table recently was announced for auction, and they claim it as 1830 though I do not know exactly how they got that date. I am hoping they will reply with further details on provenance. It's a beautiful table with plaques saying "Joseph Zanetti" and "Manchester".
A French bagatelle (pin bagatelle) that recently went to auction. Dimensions were listed as 187cm long x 81cm wide x 96cm tall.
Another table, seemingly from the exact same maker (note the side drawers,) comes with even more great photographs. This was listed as "Rosewood Bagatelle Table (assumed William IV period 1765-1837)". Now, it's safe to assume the appraisers know the wood type, but always take guesses at the period with a grain of salt, especially from auction houses that often don't have the time and motivation to do a deep dive on a piece like this.
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| here is an excellent detail you seldom get to see: how the incline of the table is propped up! |
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| original scoring pegs! |
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| another seldom-seen detail. I do not know what these tiny drawers would be good for aside from the scoring pegs |
Including this pin bagatelle for the design difference that the gates are on their side, acting as cups.
Image taken from the gamesboard site, unsure where this was first published but if you have any doubt that cockamaroo is in pin bagatelle...
Here is a pin bagatelle that includes a trough ala Klondike Pool
And this table has a trough system very similar to contemporary bar billiards. Perhaps an early version?
Next I want to highlight a few images from an 1895 publication, Manuel du Clement, published by famous Paris toy store Au Paradis Des Enfants. The book of dances also has a small catalogue that includes Toupies Hollandaises, but interestingly, no bagatelle toys!
It also includes the marvelous game Le Mat De Cocagne
Just for the record, if you ever see meniton of Cue Roque, it's essentially an early form of bumper pool.
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| Cue Roque table from Brunswick-Balke-Collender Co. Billiard and Pool Table Catalog 1916 |
There are a few things I want to point out about this American catalogue. We've seen these images before, but some things bear repeating...
First, English Bagatelle is 9-hole bagatelle. Flat surface. (Oh hey and Toupie Hollandaise is called Devil Among The Tailors here)
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| 1883 J.M. Brunswick and Balke Co catalog |
But then carombolette is described as "A combination of pigeon hole and bagatelle," where if you remove the stopper it transforms from pigeon hole to bagatelle. That is, the slanted pin field is referred to as bagatelle circa 1883.
As we near the end I want to point out this great moment in pinball history, where an english bagatelle was brought into court. It mentions Whiffle (a huge milestone in pinball history) was legally considered a bagatelle, draws comparison between Whiffle and the "slot machine bagatelle", then uses the english bagatelle to dismiss the notion of these new machines as skill games.
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| 1933-03-10 The Gazette |
As always, I'll leave you with the most important piece of bagatelle research I have ever found. The Rosetta Stone of pinball history.
I give you...
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| it's beautiful. |
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