Get Ready for the Third Annual Cootie Medallion Hunt!

The 3rd Annual Cootie Medallion Hunt will take place Wednesday, October 14th through Sunday, October 18th! No buttons to buy this year. Medallion hunters will need to make a $5.00 donation to the Robbinsdale Historical Society in order to qualify for a chance to win and claim the $300.00 cash prize! A series of 5 clues will be on Facebook, Tweeted, on the historical society website, and in the kiosk on West Broadway.

1. The Cootie medallion will be found in a park within the borders of Robbinsdale.
2. The medallion will be enclosed in an envelope or other container bearing the name and logo of a Robbinsdale business.
3. Anyone under the age of 18 must have a parent/guardian’s permission to participate.
4. No digging with a shovel will be necessary.
5. No climbing will be necessary.
6. No disassembly will be necessary.
7. Searchers must not deface public property or otherwise violate laws.***Check park hours.
8. No members of the Robbinsdale Historical Society Board are eligible to win.
9. Winners must show proof of a $5.00 donation to the Robbinsdale Historical Society in order to claim the prize.
10. Searchers assume all risk for personal injury.
11. Taxes due, if any, are the responsibility of the winner.
12. If the medallion is not found by 6:00 pm, October 18th the hunt will terminate.
13. If you find the medallion, immediately, text-or call and leave a message @ 612-720-7423. Your text or call will be, promptly, returned. Proceed to the Robbinsdale Historical Society museum @ 4915 42nd Ave N, Robbinsdale,MN 55422. A historical society board member will meet you there to award the prize.
14. The decisions of the Robbinsdale Historical Society Board are final.

Did you know the Game of Cootie was invented in Robbinsdale? In the early 1940’s, W.H. “Herb” Schaper, a postal worker and avid fisherman whittled a bug-like fishing lure that he thought might make a fun toy. The idea led him to invent the Cootie game. First introduced in 1949, Schaper made the earliest editions on his mother’s porch in Robbinsdale. In 1950 Schaper offered Dayton’s department store; several Cootie sets on consignment. The game sold over 5,592 by the end of the year. In 1952 Schaper’s company sold 1.2 million Cootie games and thereafter, a million games a year. By the mid-1960s, Schaper’s company was selling more than twenty-five different games.