At the Heart of It

We’re puzzle people. This year, as we reflect on our 20 years in business, we felt that the story of how we came to be puzzle people is one “Wirth” retelling.

Almost one hundred years ago, our history took root in Chagrin Falls, Ohio, with a Depression-Era startup called: Falls Puzzles. A true family business, each Falls Puzzle was hand-crafted at home by the Jones family. Mr. John Paul Jones designed rubber stamps for each figural, “whimsy” piece, starting the cut-pattern template by hand-stamping the back of each board with a bevy of whimsies to complement the puzzle image. These boards then went to Mrs. Mary Belle “Jimmie” Jones, who hand-cut each puzzle with a scroll saw, following the stamped template and filling spaces between each whimsy piece with her delicate and intricate knob style. After each puzzle was cut, the Jones children would gather and assemble the pieces of each puzzle to ensure all were accounted for before they made their way to their new homes.

Their unmatched craftsmanship landed them in the homes of British aristocracy and, more importantly, in the home of the great-grandmother of one of our founders, Chris Wirth. Mrs. Aileen Winslow was good friends with the Falls Puzzle Jones family and, through the years, amassed a collection of over 100 beloved Falls Puzzles. These puzzles became the hearth of the Wirth family. Piece by piece, hours of shared attention became generations of cherished memories. On every family vacation, across multiple generations, one of Aileen’s Falls Puzzles lured the family to the table for conversation and connection.

Twenty-five years ago, the Wirths chose to make their family’s joy, their livelihood–to bring the intricacy, craftsmanship, and beauty of wooden jigsaw puzzles to new generations of families around the world. With explicit permission from the Jones family, they began a journey to recreate the magic of Falls Puzzles.

This puzzle, “At The Heart of It,” is a recreation of one of the Falls Puzzles that served as the blueprint for Liberty Puzzles. It was a gift from Jimmie Jones to Mrs. Aileen Winslow on Valentine’s Day 1938, as noted on the back of the original box penned by Aileen herself. The original puzzle is framed and hangs in our factory store, reminding us daily of what’s at the heart of Liberty Puzzles. We have taken care and time to manufacture it faithfully, matching the hand-cut pattern design line by line. This recreation exemplifies both where we have come from and also just how far we’ve come.

Thank you for making room at your table for us. 

Thank you for being an important piece of our history.

Thank you for being puzzle people.

P.S. The collection remains in the Wirth family to this day, inherited by the great-great-grandchildren of Aileen. Many of these puzzles (including the one featured here) are on display at our factory in Boulder which is open to the public for tours weekdays from 10-4. If you are ever in the neighborhood, stop by and see a piece of history.