board game: Dig

The Parker Brothers company began in 1883 with when George S. Parker invented his first card game, Banking. Parker later obtained the rights to games published by W.& S.B. Ives, and in 1887 collaborated with his two brothers, officially forming the Parker Brothers company. During their first year of business, the brothers published a catalog containing 125 different games. The firm continued to grow, and in 1925 Parker Brothers purchased the educational division of the United States Playing Card Company, producing educational games for adults and children, covering a wide variety of subject matter including real estate, shopping, transportation, and current events. In 1934 the three brothers garnered worldwide attention for their introduction of Monopoly, which has since remained a popular favorite. By 1968, General Mills, the food company, had purchased Parker Brothers and through it introduced the widely popular Nerf Ball. By the 1980s, Parker Brothers developed a publishing arm of the corporation and produced books featuring American Greetings' much-loved Care Bears and Strawberry Shortcake. By 1985 General Mills merged its Parker Brothers with Kenner Toys, another subsidiary, both of which joined Hasbro, Inc. in 1991.