| 1909 |
Skee-Ball invented and patented by J.D. Estes of Philadelphia. |
1914 |
First Skee-Ball Alleys sold and distributed to the outdoor amusement industry market by Maurice Piesen. Measuring 36 feet long, the alleys were quite large. As a result, the potential playing market was restricted since the game required some strength to play. |
| 1928 |
Size of the Alley reduced by more than half – to 14 feet. Tremendous popularity achieved as the shortened version widened the range of appeal. Now the game was accessible to women, children and the elderly. |
| 1932 |
First national Skee-Ball tournament held in Atlantic City, New Jersey arcade. |
| 1935 |
Wurlitzer Company acquired Skee-Ball rights from Piesen. |
| 1945 |
Philadelphia Toboggan Company acquired the copyright, patents, and all rights for the exclusive manufacturing of Skee-Ball Alleys from Wurlitzer. |
| 1974 |
Skee-Ball moved to “state-of-the-art” as electronic alleys are introduced to the market. |
| 1977 |
Philadelphia Toboggan Company forms Skee-Ball, Inc. Applying meticulous care, Skee-Ball, Inc. manufactures four different models with various options from the no frills Alley to the top-of-the-line digital, solid state machine. |
| 1985 |
Skee-Ball, Inc. updates Alleys. Additions such as sound effects, musical selections, new electronic componentry are added which allows the operator the ability to reprogram all game settings at their location. This increases profitability of the game. |
| 1990 |
As the new year unfolded, the games industry faced a battle to capture market share of the consumers discretionary income. Skee-Ball’s two new product introductions and the move to larger, more efficient facilities are the strategies designed to address this challenge. |
| 1992 |
Skee-Ball purchases Michigan based Vari-Tech, Inc, adding a complete line of custom midway game fixtures to Skee-Ball's already expanding line of products. |
| 1994 |
Skee-Ball, Inc. purchases National Sports Games located in Phoenix, Arizona. This adds an exciting new spin to their already expansive product line by combining it with a quality top of line of sports related redemption games. |
| 1998 |
Four new versions of the Alleys are introduced to the market, increasing the popularity in Skee-Ball and worldwide interest in the new varieties. |
| 1999 |
Skee-Ball, Inc. celebrates 90 years of growth and commitment to manufacturing popular and reliable family-oriented redemption and coin-operated games. |
| 2000 |
With the addition of many new sports and novelty games to Skee-Ball’s already diverse line of redemption products, Skee-Ball decides to take amusement a step further. In doing so, Skee-Ball created their one-of-a-kind Sports Attractions. These Sports Attractions were designed for the sports enthusiast wanting to be challenged in a simulation sporting event. |
| 2001 |
Skee-Ball Inc. announces the advent of a new business relationship with Elaut N.V. from Belgium. The business relationship results in the formation of the new company, Skee Ball/Elaut Amusements Games. The primary product that arises from this collaboration is the Optimum Crane. |
| 2002 |
Skee-Ball/Elaut Amusement Games introduces the Big One Crane, a revolutionary innovation in the merchandising game industry. Industry renowned as a high revenue producer, this game was awarded 1st Place for the Best New Product in the Coin-Operated Games category at the 2003 IAAPA Trade Show in Orlando, FL. |
| 2003 |
In response to the popularity of the arcade version of the Big One Crane, Skee-Ball introduces a midway version of the Big One Crane. This version of the gigantic crane finds itself in great demand by amusement parks all around the world. The midway Big One Crane was awarded 1st Place for the Best New Product in the Games category at the 2004 IAAPA Trade Show in Orlando, FL. |
| 2004 |
Skee-Ball continues to add to its ever-expanding line of products with the Spin-N-Win. This colorful stop-action game combines bright lights, motion, and a real slot machine lever for ultimate excitement. Spin-N-Win is making its way into every major Family Entertainment Center, Amusement Park, and arcade around the world. |
| 2005 |
Skee-Ball continues to thrust itself into customer service and new product development. Only the future knows what is in store for Skee-Ball, Inc. The possibilities for Skee-Ball in the Amusement Industry are endless. |
