Pickwick

The Pickwick, manufactured by Gamages of Holborn in London, England in 1901, is one of the earliest known pinball machines. As a Pure Mechanical (PM) vertical playfield bagatelle, it predates flippers and other electromechanical control systems entirely, relying instead on gravity, pins, and the skill of the shooter to guide balls into scoring pockets. Its existence is a testament to the very earliest experimentation with coin-operated marble games that laid the groundwork for modern pinball design.

The game descends from the 'Pickwick' line associated with Londoner Henry John Gerrard Pessers, who is credited as the first to add a coin slot to a marble game, patented in 1889. Gamages, a cut-price emporium on Holborn Road in London from 1878 to 1972, is listed as the manufacturer of this model, though it may have only been the retailer.

Unfortunately, little else is known about this specific Pickwick beyond its basic specifications and vertical bagatelle gameplay. As one of the earliest recorded coin-operated pinball-adjacent machines, it offers a fascinating glimpse into the experimental phase of pinball's prehistory.