a brief history of the crossword

The crossword puzzle is the premier word game in America, tantalizing (and oftentimes frustrating) an estimated 40 million individuals nationwide. Some enthusiasts do crosswords for the mental challenge, others wish to improve their vocabulary, and some simply enjoy the sense of completion which comes from taming a jumble of clues and blanks. Regardless, there is no question that crossword puzzling remains among our favorite pastimes.

Crosswords have at their roots the "word square," a combination of words in which the letters read alike both horizontally and vertically. There is evidence that these puzzles existed in ancient times, but it was not until the nineteenth century that the modern form began to appear in children's publications in England.

In the early-1900s, a man from Liverpool by the name of Arthur Wynne created a diamond-shaped word game which used numbered boxes with corresponding clues. He called his invention a "word cross," and on December 21, 1913, it appeared in a Sunday supplement of the New York World—the first-ever publication of a modern crossword puzzle. The public's response was staggering, and this "childish" activity soon became an adult pastime. Within ten years, almost every major American newspaper featured a regular crossword section. In 1924, Simon & Schuster published a bound collection of puzzles, and the crossword book craze was born.

Today, one would be hard-pressed to pass a newsstand or enter a bookstore without seeing several crossword puzzle books. They have captured the interest and enthusiasm of seller and buyer alike. They come in a variety of sizes, skill levels and areas of interest. However, not until now has there been a consistent series of intelligently presented, thoroughly researched, high-quality, topical puzzles to delight the true crossword puzzle aficionado.