Game:Gee-Wiz the Racing Game Sensation

Benjamin Bain of Pittsburgh founded the Wolverine Supply & Manufacturing Co. in 1903. Bain began as a tool and die maker, but soon branched out into toy manufacturing. He introduced a series of horse race simulation games in 1923. These toys operated by spinning a flywheel, which shot tiny ball bearings at the underside of a line of horses, propelling them along a track. A number of these games survive today, a testament to both their popularity as well as their high quality of manufacture. Both large and small Gee-Wiz race games survive, this example is the smaller home version. A larger, deluxe version may have served as a public gambling device.