The Ouija board has become one of the classic props in horror films. Behind its mysterious aura, however, there is a story of business and entrepreneurial vocation.
By 1886, homemade boards meant to speak with spirits circulated across the American Midwest. In 1890, Baltimore partners founded a company to manufacture them. On February 10, 1891, Elijah Bond was granted a patent for the device as a “toy or game.”
According to advertising copy, the name “ouija” came from an Egyptian word meaning “good luck.” However, that is false: it is a marketing tactic designed to strengthen its association with mystery and the supernatural.
The Ouija board became so popular that by 1892 there were factories in Baltimore, New York, Chicago, and London.
Sources
· Ouija board patent: https://patentimages.storage.googleapis.com/57/4d/72/f6b1cdd11616ca/US446054.pdf
· Schmidt, Katherine, ed. 2025. Ouija: Conjuring American Popular Culture. Taylor & Francis.
