It has come time to impart the story of the History of Washoos.  It is amazing that so many love the game but do not truly understand the storied creation of it.

It all started back in a simpler time before the industrialized revolution when some folks toiled on the land while others spent most of their days on the seas in sailing vessels.  Sailing ships were the primary method of transport of goods for trade between distant lands and many ships carried large payloads.  The high traffic on the seas combined with the large payloads, inspired a group of opportunistic men to join forces and pillage these easily overtaken transport ships.  Of course, these men are what we now commonly call 'Pirates'.  Due to their occupation, Pirates would spend months at sea with very little to entertain themselves except the drink.  It did not take long for a few inventive, bored Pirates to join together some old decking boards into a box and attempt to throw silver coins into the box from a distance.  The addictive qualities of the game caught on and soon all the shipmates were engaged in tournament play to crown the boat champion.

The captain of the ship came on deck one day and placed his now empty beer jug in the middle of the box.  Being a cocky sort of fellow and always wanting to assert his dominance over those under him, he smoothly boasted that he could put the coin not only in the box but right into the jug now in the middle of the box.  He stepped to the throwing line and officially threw the first ever 'pipe'.  The captain did not like the throwing of the silver coins (lest some be lost) so he instructed the men to use spare washers instead and thus 'Washoos' was born.

Contrary to current game play, the pirates only used 1 box and would throw their washers from a line on the deck.  After both players had thrown, they would "walk the plank" to go and retreive the washers.  The captain was never to be beaten; much like 'don't beat your boss at golf nowadays'.  When 1 shipmate accidently beat the captain by getting an 'innopportune pipe', the captain turned the shipmate sideways and told him to "Walk the Plank".  The unfortunate sailor was force to walk straight off the ship into the water to his death.  Thus the origin of today's meaning of "Walk the Plank!".

The game popularity grew and soon the secrets of Washoos were passed on to other ships and seaside towns when pirates from the ship left.

And the rest is History.  Oh, by the way, the captain on the ship was named "Captain Hook".  The stories you've heard about how he lost his hand are mere fabrications.  He selectively removed his left hand in favour of a hook to better hold his extra washers during game play.