by Brian GalindoBuzzFeedBuzzFeed StaffSenior Editor, Nostalgia Nerd 1. In the early 1920s, Abercrombie & Fitch, then a retail store specializing in outdoor activities, helped introduce Mahjong to American audiences. The tile-based game had been played in China for centuries, but it was largely unknown in the US until Western travelers and businesspeople encountered it abroad in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.