Vintage c.1945 Monopoly WWII Wartime Austerity Set Waddingtons Complete No Box
Vintage John Waddington Ltd Monopoly Set, dating from approximately 1945, during the late WWII / immediate post-war austerity period.
An interesting early British Monopoly set featuring Patent No. 453689, L.N.E.R. railway stations, wooden houses/hotels and the distinctive cardboard playing tokens mounted in black wooden bases.
The set appears to have all of its original playing components present, including the six period tokens, two dice, property/title deeds, Chance and Community Chest cards, money, wooden houses/hotels and original rules.
Please note that the original box is missing and the folding board is in well-used/damaged condition, including a split through the centre.
The set also has fascinating player-made additions from a previous owner, who appears to have created their own extended house rules. These include additional handwritten cards and three hand-drawn boxes on the board marked “Jail Stage 1, 2 & 3.” These have been left with the set as part of its history.
Key Details
- 🎩 Game: Monopoly
- 🏭 Manufacturer: John Waddington Ltd
- 🇬🇧 Made In: England
- 📅 Era: Circa 1945 / Late WWII – Early Post-War
- 📜 Patent: No. 453689
- 🚂 Railways: L.N.E.R.
- 🎲 Dice: 2 period cream dice
- 🏠 Buildings: Wooden houses & hotels
- 🎩 Tokens: 6 cardboard pictorial tokens on black wooden bases
- 💷 Money: Period coloured Monopoly banknotes
- 📖 Rules: Original rules leaflet
- 📦 Original Box: Missing
- 🏷️ Condition: Vintage / Well Used – Please Read Below
Original Playing Pieces
Includes all six distinctive period cardboard/wood playing tokens:
- 🎩 Top Hat
- 👞 Shoe / Boot
- 🐴 Rocking Horse
- 🏎️ Racing Car
- 🧺 Iron
- 🚢 Ship / Battleship
Also included:
- ✔ Folding Monopoly board
- ✔ Original rules leaflet
- ✔ 2 dice
- ✔ 28 Title Deeds
- ✔ Chance cards
- ✔ Community Chest cards
- ✔ Wooden houses
- ✔ Wooden hotels
- ✔ Monopoly money in the various denominations
- ✔ Additional player-made cards/rule extensions
- ❌ Original box is not included
Interesting Period Features
This early Waddingtons version differs considerably from later Monopoly sets.
Features include:
- Patent No. 453689 printed on the rules and banknotes
- L.N.E.R. railway identification
- Early locomotive artwork across the centre of the board
- Cardboard pictorial tokens mounted into black wooden bases
- Wooden houses and hotels rather than later plastic pieces
- Cream-coloured period dice
- Original rules requesting a 2½d stamp for questions sent to John Waddington Ltd
These features are consistent with the late-war / immediate post-war transitional Monopoly sets produced around 1945.
Player-Made Rule Additions
An unusual feature of this particular set is that a previous owner appears to have developed their own additional Monopoly rules.
Several handwritten additional cards are included and the board has three hand-drawn spaces marked:
Jail Stage 1
Jail Stage 2
Jail Stage 3
These additions have deliberately been left with the game rather than removed, as they form an interesting part of the set's history and show how it was actually played by a previous owner.
Condition
- Approximately 80 years old
- Original box is missing
- Board is in heavily used vintage condition
- Board is split through the centre/fold
- Hand-drawn Jail Stage 1, 2 & 3 additions to the board
- General age-related marks, wear, discolouration and edge wear throughout
- Cards and paper components show age-related wear
- Playing pieces show age and use but all six period tokens are present
- Wooden houses/hotels show age-related wear
- Additional homemade cards are included
- Not a pristine collector's example
- Sold as a genuinely used vintage game with considerable age and character
Please study all photographs carefully for the exact condition and contents. The photographs form an important part of the description.
A fascinating surviving c.1945 British Monopoly set, retaining its distinctive wartime/austerity-era playing pieces and period components, together with unusual homemade rule modifications added by a previous owner.
Item will be securely packaged for delivery.