About 3000 B.C.
- Egyptian pyramid of Cheops at Gizeh near Cairo includes a tablet recording mythical explanation of extra five days added to Egyptian calenar of 360 days. Thoth, god of night, gambled with the moon, winning five new days to add to the calendar, outside the jurisdiction of Ra, the god of creation. [80.30]
About 2300 B.C.
- Emperor Yao of China invents an elaborate game with hundreds of pieces, in which spectators bet on the outcome played by two opponents. [80.31]
About 1500 B.C.
- In India, betting herds of cattle on chariot racing and dice games are the chief amusements of the people. [80.33]
700
- (month unknown)
- Arabian caliph Abdul-Malik lines up the officers of his army in the palace courtyard and has them toss coins to decide which of them would share in the distribution of some of Syria's wealth. [80.62]
1190
- (month unknown)
- King Richard of England and King Philip of France have gambling laws drawn up. King and noblemen are the only ones allowed to play for money. [80.41]
1394
- (month unknown)
- Duke of Saxony plays a game of cards with the duke of Letzburg for a portion of the forest of Ardennes. [80.42]
1466
- February 14
- First recorded lottery to involve buying of tickets and distribution of prize money, held in Bruges, Belgium, run to raise money for the poor of the town. [80.230]
1520
- (month unknown)
- King Francis I of France signs bill legalizing lotteries in Paris, Lyons, Strasbourg, Bordeaux, and Lille. [80.230]
1530
- (month unknown)
- The first publicly run European lottery commences in Florence, raising money for public works. [39]
1566
- (month unknown)
- The first public English lottery commences, raising money for public works projects. [39]
1567
- (month unknown)
- The first state lottery is held in England, authorized by Queen Elizabeth I. 400,000 tickets are sold, with top prize worth (equivalent of) US$17,500 (1960s dollars). Purpose of the lottery is to fund repairs for several harbors. [80.231]
1569
- January 11
- First recorded lottery in England is drawn at Saint Paul's Cathedral. [1]
1584
- (month unknown)
- Ivan the Terrible of Russia, on his deathbed, plays Boris Godunov at chess for the entire contents of his treasury. [80.38]
1590
- (month unknown)
- Pope Gregory XIV orders ex-communication of anyone who bets on the election of a new pope. [80.231]
1612
- (month unknown)
- In England, King James I sanctions a lottery to raise financing for early settlers to America (Virginia). [80.42,234]
1630
- March 22
- First colonial legislation prohibiting gambling enacted (Boston). [1]
1631
- (month unknown)
- London's first aqueduct water supply is built with funds raised by lottery. [80.42]
1665
- (month unknown)
- The first horse racetrack in North America is built on Long Island. [39]
1668
- March 25
- First horse race in America takes place. [1]
1699
- (month unknown)
- In England, Parliament outlaws private lotteries. [39]
1700
- (month unknown)
- In England, a law prohibits lotteries. [80.241]
1753
- (month unknown)
- The British Museum is funded with lottery proceeds. [39]
1809
- April 18
- First run of 2,000 guineas horse race at Newmarket England. [1]
1811
- (month unknown)
- Louisiana passes a law prohibiting gambling anywhere in the state. [80.300]
1823
- (month unknown)
- Louisiana passes a law permitting New Orleans to license six gambling houses for a fee of US$5000 per year each. [80.300]
1826
- July 18
- The last lottery takes place in London, as the British government bans them. [40.12]
1827
- (month unknown)
- William Crockford founds a new gambling club in London, England: Crockford's Gaming Club. [80.297]
- John Davis starts a gambling house in New Orleans, Louisiana. [80.300]
1831
- December 10
- "Spirit of the Times" begins publishing (weekly horse racing sheet). [1]
1832
- (month unknown)
- Louisiana removes limit on number of gambling licenses it issues. [80.300]
1833
- (month unknown)
- Pennsylvania, New York, and Massachusetts end state authorized lotteries. [39]
1834
- November 1
- First published reference to poker (as Mississippi riverboat game). [1]
1838
- January 1
- First official horse race in South Australia-Adelaide. [1]
1839
- February 26
- Jem Mason on Lottery wins first Grand National Steeplechase (Britain). [1]
1844
- May 25
- The British government makes a law that police may enter any gaming house on a request by any two householders. [80.298]
- May 29
- William Crockford, clubman/gambler, dies, leaving a fortune worth US$5 million. [80.298] (May 24 [1])
1845
- (month unknown)
- The Gambling Act is passed in England. Gambling debts can not be recovered by legal action. [80.50]
1857
- (month unknown)
- Public gaming is made illegal in France. [80.291]
1858
- (month unknown)
- Monte Carlo opens in Monaco, by gambling operators forced from Hamburg. [39]
1860
- (month unknown)
- In California, all banking games (where player bets against the house) are banned. [39]
1863
- September 27
- The united kingdom of Italy is proclaimed. The Lotto is made a legal source of national income. [80.235]
1867
- June 19
- First Belmont Stakes, Ruthless wins. [1]
1868
- June 10
- Second Belmont Stakes, General Duke wins. [1]
- (month unknown)
- The Louisiana Lottery Company (a criminal syndicate from New York) is authorized and granted an exclusive 25-year charter. [39]
1869
- June 5
- Third Belmont Stakes, Fenian wins. [1]
- (month unknown)
- Gambling is legalized in Nevada. [39]
1871
- October 8
- Great Fire kills 200, destroys over 4 square miles (10 square km) of Chicago buildings, and original Emancipation Proclamation. (In 1944, the estate of Louis Cohn releases a letter claiming he knocked over a lantern in a barn while playing craps with friends.) [1] [80.147]
1872
- (month unknown)
- French chemist Pierre Oller devises pari-mutuel system of pooling betting stakes for equitable distribution among winners. [80.191]
- October
- Gambling centers in Ems and Wissbaden, Germany, close by order of the Prussian government. [80.296]
- December 31
- The casinos of Homburg, Germany, operate for the last time, on order of the Prussian government. [80.295]
1875
- May 17
- First Kentucky Derby: Oliver Lewis aboard Aristides wins in 2:37.75. [1]
1876
- May 15
- Second Kentucky Derby: Bobby Swim aboard Vagrant wins in 2:38.25. [1]
1877
- May 22
- Third Kentucky Derby: Billy Walker aboard Baden-Baden wins in 2:38. [1]
- (month unknown)
- The first pari-mutuel betting in American horse-racing takes place at Morris and Jerome Park in New York. [86.164]
1878
- May 21
- 4th Kentucky Derby: Jimmy Carter aboard Day Star wins in 2:37.25. [1]
- (month unknown)
- Pari-mutuel betting on horse-racing is introduced to Churchill Downs in Kentucky. [86.164]
1879
- May 20
- 5th Kentucky Derby: Charlie Shauer aboard Lord Murphy wins in 2:37. [1]
1880
- May 18
- 6th Kentucky Derby: George Lewis aboard Fonso wins in 2:37.5. [1]
- (month unknown)
- First hand-operated calculating machine invented in New Zealand for use in pari-mutuel betting system for horse racing. [80.191]
1881
- May 17
- 7th Kentucky Derby: Jim McLaughlin aboard Hindoo wins in 2:40. [1]
1882
- May 16
- 8th Kentucky Derby: Babe Hurd aboard Apollo wins in 2:40.25. [1]
1883
- May 23
- 9th Kentucky Derby: William Donohue aboard Leonatus wins in 2:43. [1]
1884
- May 16
- 10th Kentucky Derby: Isaac Murphy aboard Buchanan wins in 2:40.25. [1]
1885
- May 14
- 11th Kentucky Derby: Babe Henderson aboard Joe Cotton wins in 2:37.25. [1]
1886
- May 14
- 12th Kentucky Derby: Paul Duffy aboard Ben Ali wins in 2:36.5. [1]
1887
- May 11
- 13th Kentucky Derby: Isaac Lewis aboard Montrose wins in 2:39.25. [1]
- May 26
- Racetrack betting becomes legal in New York state. [1]
1888
- May 14
- 14th Kentucky Derby: George Covington aboard MacBeth II wins in 2:38.25. [1]
1889
- May 9
- 15th Kentucky Derby: Thomas Kiley aboard Spokane wins in 2:34.5. [1]
1891
- May 13
- 17th Kentucky Derby: Isaac Murphy aboard Kingman wins in 2:52.25. [1]
1892
- May 11
- 18th Kentucky Derby: Lonnie Clayton aboard Azra wins in 2:41.5. [1]
1893
- May 10
- 19th Kentucky Derby: Eddie Kunze aboard Lookout wins in 2:39.25. [1]
1894
- March 13
- J L Johnstone of England invents horse racing starting gate. [1]
- May 15
- 20th Kentucky Derby: Frank Goodale aboard Chant wins in 2:41. [1]
1895
- May 6
- 21st Kentucky Derby: Soup Perkins aboard Halma wins in 2:37.5. [1]
- (month unknown)
- In the USA, the Louisiana Lottery Company is abolished. Over 30 years, the private lottery took in US$300 million, paying out little. [39] [40.13]
- Charles Fey, American mechanic, invents the first slot machine, called Liberty Bell, first used in a San Francisco gambling saloon. The machine employs three spinning reels, and costs 5-cents to operate. A window displays the selected symbol of each reel, and there are ten symbols on each reel. [39] [80.70] (1887 [87.203])
1896
- January 25
- Birth of John Moores British gambling magnate/multi-millionaire. [1]
- May 6
- 22nd Kentucky Derby: Willie Simms aboard Ben Brush wins in 2:07.75. [1]
1897
- May 4
- 23rd Kentucky Derby: Buttons Garner aboard Typhoon II wins in 2:12.5. [1]
- May 29
- 31st Belmont Stakes: J Scherrer aboard Scottish Cheiftain wins in 2:23.25. [1]
- (month unknown)
- The Swedish government starts a state lottery. [80.241]
1898
- May 4
- 24th Kentucky Derby: Willie Simms aboard Plaudit wins in 2:09. [1]
- May 26
- 32nd Belmont Stakes: F Littlefield aboard Bowling Brook wins in 2:32. [1]
1899
- May 4
- 25th Kentucky Derby: Fred Taral aboard Manuel wins in 2:12. [1]
- May 25
- 33rd Belmont Stakes: R Clawson aboard Jean Beraud wins in 2:23. [1]
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