The history of Monopoly can be traced back to 1903, when American anti-monopolist Lizzie Magie created a game which she hoped would explain the single tax theory of Henry George. It was intended as an educational tool to illustrate the negative aspects of concentrating land in private monopolies. She took out a patent in 1904. Her game, The Landlord's Game, was self-published, beginning in 1906.
Wikipedia
And then the game idea was stolen and commercialized by some rich fuck. Capitalism breeding innovation, once again.