Quirkiest Gambling History Facts

With gambling being such a huge industry, involving so many millions of people, there are bound to be interesting stories that come out of this amazing world.  Gambling has quite a history behind it, and some of the quirkiest tales come from as far back as Ancient China.

Here are a number of interesting gambling history facts that I bet you’ve never heard:

Keno Built the Great Wall of China

In Ancient China, authorities needed money to fund the building of the Great Wall of China. As such, they introduced a type of lottery game that is very similar to the game of Keno that we know today, in order to collect funds and continue with the construction.

Poker Won the Presidency

There are many politicians in US history that made no apologies for enjoying a good gambling game now and then. The most famous was President Richard M. Nixon who used to enjoy a lively game of poker. Nixon went on to finance his run for US Presidency in 1946 with money that he had won playing poker during the Second World War while he served in the Navy.

Job Description: Dice Swallower

Betting shops in 18th Century England were shady establishments that were always trying to keep one step ahead of the law. If the police raided them, and they were caught with gambling paraphernalia, justice was swift. In order to ensure that no gambling items were found during the police raid, one poor fellow had the unenviable job of swallowing the dice.

Dam, No Gambling!

Did you ever wonder why Boulder City, Nevada, is the only city in the state that does not allow gambling? Doesn’t it seem strange that there is a lone city in the same state that boasts Las Vegas? So here’s the tale: The teams of men who built the famous Hoover Dam were accommodated in Boulder City. As they did not wish the men to squander away all their wages on gambling, the city simply passed a law to ban it outright. Until today, gambling is not permitted in Boulder City.