With the size and scope of the town of Eureka, the community has many businesses in the area spread throughout. Black Cat Board Game Library is a recently opened business located in
downtown Eureka.
Black Cat Board Game Library, often referred to as Black Cat, was established in May 2024 by husband and wife, Tristen and Jourdin Somers. They both share a love of all things board games and Dungeons & Dragons.
Regular customers at La Finca, the Somers enjoyed the atmosphere and appreciated the community. When a commercial space opened up in Old Town, they quickly tried to get the building. Once they had the building, it only took them a short time to touch it up.
“It took us like 2 months to get this place up and running,” Tristen Somers said. “We tore down the ceiling, repainted the floors, the walls, we had a lot of minor repairs to do.”
They got inspiration for the business name from their two black cats, Violet and Indigo. They had also had a small collection of board games, which helped them grow their collection for Black Cat. They have a wide range of board games, ranging from more common games like Life and Monopoly, to lesser known games like Kabuto Sumo and Wingspan.
Besides having board games for people to play, Black Cat also runs events throughout the week. They have regular events like their Dungeons & Dragons on Wednesdays and Thursdays, run by Tristen, and trivia on the weekends. They also run stand alone events such as scavenger hunts and walk-throughs for their games.
“Normally we have like 4 tables for trivia, but D&D has been cool because it’s the most consistent group of returning people. So trivia has good turnout, but I think D&D has more regular turnout,” Tristen Somers said.
As well as running events during the week, Black Cat also has a program titled “Board Game Buds” where people looking for people to play with can interact with each other to find a time to play together and figure out what their interests are. The program can be found on their website, blackcatbgl.com.
They also sell D&D miniatures in blind boxes that can be bought in person. The miniatures are hand painted by Jourdin, and videos of her painting them can be found on their Facebook page. Jourdin finds painting them to be very relaxing and calming. They have also recently started selling dice and bracelets, as well as Little Rose brand soaps.
Black Cat provides a space for any group of people to come together and enjoy their favorite games. Tristen and Jourdin hope to have strangers get to know each other and bond through the fun and imagination of playing various games from their selection. They love being able to be part of Eureka’s community and hope to bring joy to the many people in the area.
