This was a staple card game of my youth – we played it fairly religiously. The pack of cards was specially made for the game and had pictures of different viliage characters on them - like a Farmer or Baker - and one of the characters was an “old maid”!
The dealer deals all of the cards to the players. Some players may have more cards than others and this is fine. Players look at their cards and you lay down on the table any pairs you have (e.g., 2 kings, 2 sevens, etc.)
Beginning with the dealer, each player takes turns offering his hand face-down to the person on his left. That person selects a card and adds it to his or her hand. This player then sees if the selected card makes a pair with their original cards. If so, the pair is discarded face up as well. The player who just took a card then offers his or her hand to the person to their left and so on.
Obviously the purpose is to try and get rid of all your pairs and NOT to have the “Old Maid” at the end of the game!!
It was good fun and we played it regularly because we enjoyed it. It was also better than a normal card game where the figures and cards look a bit boring to a child of 9!
Do You Remember Old Maid?
Do You Remember Old Maid?