In less than two centuries time, poker has
changed drastically. Once a game mainly played by cheats, outlaws, and knife-makers
aboard riverboats, it has developed into a celebrated 'sport' played worldwide.
The cheat and hustler has been replaced by the professional poker player,
whose celebrity status is much more akin to a professional athlete or movie
star than an infamous outlaw. Poker hands are no longer dealt by professional
cheats who manipulate the deck; instead, they are often dealt by software
programs connecting players from around the globe.
The exact origins of poker are unclear. It seems to have originated from
a 16th century Persian card game known as As Nas. This game was played with
25 cards with 5 different suits. The game played in a similar fashion to
modern 5 card stud and possessed similar poker hands rankings, such as three-of-a-kind.
When Europeans began to play the game, they called it 'poque' or 'pochen.'
2 While poker's origins may lie in Europe and Persia, it truly developed
in the United States. Poker was first widely played in New Orleans in the
early 1800's. Prior to the American Civil War, poker spread quickly from
New Orleans to towns throughout the Western frontier. 3 Poker's spread was
the result of a general spread of gambling during the era. The West was comprised
largely of speculators and travelers, both groups that enjoyed gambling.
Gambling suited the speculator's individualistic and risk-taking traits.
Unburdened by family needs and the social stigmas of Southern and Northern
culture, travelers were allowed to indulge in this vice for their own entertainment.
4
Those responsible for poker's initial boom were professional gamblers,
trying to expand their craft. The professional gambler viewed his occupation
as quintessentially American. They considered themselves entrepreneurial
businessmen who took advantage of America's growing obsession of gambling.
However, the public did not have such a rosy view of professional gamblers.
Gambling was viewed to be comprised of two distinct groups. There was the
player, who was considered to be a gentlemen who merely enjoyed this form
of entertainment in moderation. In contrast, there was the professional,
who aimed to simply make money without any regard to moderation or propriety.
Professional gamblers were considered to contribute nothing to society. The
public viewed their practice as nothing more than one man trying to con another
out of his hard-earned money.5 This was especially the case because professional
gamblers often cheated in order to win money from their victims.
Another practice of professional gamblers that was particularly troublesome
was their disregard for the social status of their victim. "To [professional
gamblers], as to prostitutes, it seemed unprofessional to differentiate between
paying customers. They consequently played indiscriminately with all potential
victims, from the most upright planet to the meanest flatboatsman or, even
worse, the black slave 6 ." This practice slowly led to the "democratization" of
gambling in America. No long was gambling, poker in particular, thought to
be a practice of only the wealthy. Rather, it became a practice to which
people of all social ranks were accustomed.
Professional gamblers were involved in both banking and percentage games,
such as roulette and faro, as well as card games. Of all games, faro was
a particular favorite for both professional and casual gamblers. |
|
Faro is a game where players would bet on which
cards would be dealt next. Both banking games, like faro, and card games
guaranteed the pro a steady income over the long run. Banking and percentage
games had a built-in house edge that guaranteed the professional to be a
statistical winner. These types of gamblers are similar to the modern casino,
which primarily rely on these types of games for revenue. When professionals
dealt card games, such as three card monte or poker, they guaranteed themselves
a steady income from cheating. 7
Poker initially was played with one round of betting. Players were dealt
five cards face down and there was no draw of cards. 8 Professional gamblers
later modified the rules in order to enhance the profitability of the game
for them. After 1850, wild cards and bluffing became common practices in
the game. The draw was also added. The addition of the draw helped professionals
because it introduced another round of betting (meaning another opportunity
to cheat their opponents) as well as introducing more skill to the game.
9
Poker playing became increasingly popular as American gambling shifted
from the frontier towns to the riverboats. While gambling was tolerated on
the Southwestern frontier during the early 1800's, it came out of favor by
the 1830's. The Western, frontier culture of these towns was steadily replaced
by Southern culture, which was more averse to gambling. 10 Western towns
passed ordinances against gambling and many towns kicked out known gamblers.
Some gamblers were tarred and feathered and there were even instances where
vigilante groups lynched gamblers. 11 Since their trade was no longer tolerated
on land, professional gamblers took their trade to the many steamboats navigating
the Mississippi River. However, carrying heavy equipment like a roulette
wheel proved more difficult aboard the steamboats, so card games like poker
became an increasingly popular game of choice for gamblers. 12
The California gold rush introduced a new venue for poker playing. The
gold rush resulted in a large influx of men traveling to a new area, seeking
to strike it rich. Unsurprisingly, gambling houses sprouted in Northern California,
offering an array of gambling and entertainment opportunities for young men.
Casinos employed musicians and pretty women (not necessarily prostitutes)
to entertain gamblers as they played games such as roulette, faro, and blackjack.
13
During the early gold rush period, poker was not popular at all in California.
This is because gamblers preferred games with more fast paced action. 14
Poker, especially the traditional five card stud or draw, is fairly slow.
Gamblers cannot constantly double or lose all of their money in a single
bet like they can in roulette. However, poker would eventually become a California
pastime. As people became more settled in California and the gold rush ended,
their desire for fast action games like faro diminished, and they had a renewed
interest in slower games like poker. 15
Poker's growth during the 1800's was largely the result of the increase
in gambling along the American frontier. Nevertheless, it managed to establish
itself as a unique gambling game, with characteristics notably different
from the other frontier gambling games. |
The History
of Poker 
