The History of Gambling

Gambling, as most people now know, is not a new thing. Gambling machines like slots and the glitzy and glamorous casinos may be modern innovations, but gambling itself, the act of taking chances and setting up stakes has been around since the cave man learned that rubbing two sticks together can make fire.

Archaeological finds have found die and other primitive gambling implements in digs in Africa, Europe, China, Japan,India and other places in the world. Cave paintings have depicted cave men engaged in gambling.

In 23000 BC the Chinese were already playing a game of chance using tiles. It is believed that the Chinese were the first people to gamble using cards, since they were the ones who invented paper.

In the Bible, it is said that the soldiers who were looking after Jesus Christ's crucifixion cast lots on who will get parts of his robe.

The English king Henry VIII, despite being a consummate gambler himself, banned gambling among his army after he discovered that more time was devoted to gambling than to practicing drills and war exercises. The odds of his wife Anne Boleyn from being acquitted after he charged her with an incestuous relationship with her brother was a dismal 10-1.

In the Americas, Native Americans payed with dice to predict the harvests, the recovery of the ill, and to acquire possessions.

Lotteries were put to more practical use by the Continental Army during the Revolutionary War. during the war, almost every state had sanctioned lotteries, and even Abraham Lincoln himself bought the first lottery ticket in a lottery sanctioned to support efforts to make improvements in the District of Columbia. Lotteries continued to be used a popular fund raising methods in the 1900s and even today.

It was usually in riverboats and frontier towns that gambling became a popular activity. Some of these activities were legal, and some were not, and gambling often became a dangerous activity, especially with the emergence of cheaters, con men, and professional gamblers, who were often called 'sharpers'.

Efforts to close down lotteries were instigated after the civil war, when evangelical protests against the activity was at its strongest. The state of Nevada even banned any gambling game in 1910, a surprise considering its reputation now as the primary gambling state in the country. Restrictions on gambling finally slackened in the 1930s, along with the loosening of restrictions on drinking. Nevada finally legalized gambling in 1931, and from then casinos started to sprout from the Nevada desert sands. Atlantic city legalized gambling in 1978, and other states followed suit. Now gambling is a legalized activity in all states. Gambling is now a major activity in the States, a giant industry that is generating millions of revenues every year. The thrill of the game, and glitz and glamour that comes with gambling are only a few reasons why gambling is done by millions of Americans today. But no matter what kind of gambling you are into, it is important to keep in mind that the main aim of the game is fun and excitement. Gamble safely , and you'll definitely enjoy every experience, whether you win or lose.