George Swinnerton Parker

George Parker was born December 12 1866, the youngest of three brothers. He had first wanted to be a journalist, but was fascinated by board games as well as having a talent for inventing them in addition to an editor’s eye for detail. By the time he was 16, he had invented the first of more than one hundred games. This early game was called “Banking.” It had one hundred sixty cards with which the players borrowed and speculated. George had a game playing club with his friends. He wanted to publish the game, but was turned down by several establishments. Not easily discouraged, George paid forty dollars to have five hundred games printed and was able to sell all but twelve of them. He made a profit of one hundred dollars.

He established the George S. Parker Company in Medford, Massachusetts. In 1888, he convinced his brother Charles to go into business with him. In 1898, their oldest brother Edward joined them and Parker Brothers was born. George Parker had what he called 12 principles of business:

1. Know your goal and reach for it.
2. Find “winning moves.”
3. Play by the rules and capitalize on them.
4. Learn from failure; build on success
5. When faced with a choice, make the move with the most potential benefit versus risk.
6. When luck runs against you, hold emotion in check and set up for your next advance.
7. Never hesitate and give your opponents a second chance.
8. Seek help if the game threatens to overwhelm you.
9. Bet heavily when the odds are long in your favor.
10. If opportunity narrows, focus on your strengths.
11. Be a gracious winner or loser. Don’t be petty. Share what you learn.
12. Ignore principles 1 to 11 at your peril.
    

George Parker married Grace Mann on June 15, 1896. The couple had three children: Bradstreet (1897-1918), Richard Perkins (1900-1921) Sally Parker Barton (1907-2000).

He died September 26, 1952 and was buried in Harmony Grove Cemetery. Lot 1786, Grave 8, Yew Ave.

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Photo: Wikipedia.

Sources Consulted:

• Find a Grave.
• Wikipedia.