Gambling in the Old West ~ Julie Lence

 

Casey's Saloon & Gambling Hall (reddit)

For centuries, gambling has been an accepted form of entertainment, dating back to the Old Stone Age.  The earliest 6-sided dice game dates back to 3000 BC. In the 1800’s, a good portion of the male population frequented saloons and gambling halls to imbibe in alcohol and play a game of chance. These establishments were often considered their ‘home away from home’ and generally accepted by women, who had their own form of entertainment with quilting bees and church revivals, where they had prayer meetings and sang hymns. Many of my novels feature a saloon, and some of my heroes are quite adept at cheating at poker to earn a living. Below are some other games of chance men enjoyed.

 

Keno (E-bay)

Keno: Played exactly like bingo, tables were set up in a room with Keno cards on them. Players would enter and choose which card(s) they wanted to play. The people) running the night’s game stood at the front of the room selling tickets and ivory chips the size of half dollars that had half-moons in the middle. The other person running the night’s game stood at the urn where the Keno balls were dropped in to. Behind those two was a large board with numbers above holes. Just like bingo, the urn holding the Keno balls has a handle. The man turns the handle, the ball drops out at the bottom, the number is called out and the ball is inserted into the hole corresponding with the number. The players use the ivory chips to cover the numbers and when they cover a row, they yell out, Keno!

 

Faro (Wikipedia)

Faro: Because of its fast action, easy-to-learn rules, and good odds, especially when players weren’t cheating, Faro rivaled poker in popularity. With one person designated the ‘banker’ and played with one deck of cards, any number of people (punters) could enter the game. To play, chips (or checks as some called them) were purchased from the banker, with bet values being determined by the house.  A board was placed on top of an oval table covered with green, with a cutout for the banker. One suit of cards (usually spades) was pasted on top of the board in numerical order. Players placed their bets on one or more cards in the layout. A deck of cards was shuffled and put inside the dealing box, (a mechanical device known as the shoe to prevent manipulations of the draw by the banker). The 1^st card dealt (the soda card) was tossed away, leaving the remaining 51. The dealer then drew 2 more cards. The 1^st (the banker’s card) was placed to the right of the dealing box. The 2^nd card (the player’s card) was placed to the left of the banker’s box.

   Suits of cards didn’t matter, and the banker’s card was the player’s losing card. So if the banker’s card was the number the player had set his betting chips on the board on top of the table, he lost his bet and the house won. The players card was the winning card and all bets placed on that number won. The dealer settled all bets on those two cards, then the next round of bets were placed before the next 2 cards were drawn, continuing to the last  cards where the dealer would ‘call the turn.’ This was a special bet at the end of each round, where the object was to predict the exact order of the remaining cards.  If all 3 last cards were the same, there was no bet.  

Roulette (Wikipedia)

Roulette: There are several theories as to who invented the game, dating back to the 17^th century.  The modern version of the game appeared in 184, with Frenchmen Francois and Louis Blanc inventing the single ‘0’ Roulette wheel, that eventually found its way to America in the 1800’s.  Americans eventually rejected the single ‘0’ and returned the ‘00’s’ back to the wheel. Early American wheels had the numbers 1-28, 0, 00, and an eagle, which was a considered a house slot that gave the establishment an extra edge. The game is played on a table with a wheel to one side. On the other side of the table, players place their chip on the number or symbol they think the ball will land on when the wheel stops spinning. The person presiding over the game (croupier) spins the wheel in one direction. He then spins a small white ball in the opposite around a circular track running along the outer edge of the wheel. As the wheel slows, the ball loses momentum and falls into one of the numbered slots, declaring a winner (or winners).

 

Poker (Photos of old America) 

Poker: The game as we know it evolved in the U.S. in the 1800’s. Based somewhat on a game Three Card Brag where players were dealt 3 cards, hoping for a triple, the strategy for involved players remembering which was cards had been dealt and which were still in the deck when placing wagers as the game continued until a winner was declared. Early hands of poker in the U.S. were often played with a 20 or 25 deck of cards. Eventually, the game broadened 1850’s to a 52 card deck, to include stud poker with 5, 6 or 7 cards being dealt. Draw poker derived from that, and wild cards and jokers also came into play in the 1850’s. From the Civil War through the net 5 decades, draw poker was the basis for all other versions of the game.

   Usually played with 1- people, with players tossing chips into the center of the table for their ante, the dealer which variation of the game is to be played (5 card stud) and deals 5 cards to each player. In turn, each player either bets his hand will beat the other players or folds, meaning he doesn’t think his cards will win. Hands are determined as 2 pair (often Jacks or better); 3 of a kind, full house, straight,  of a kind and a royal flush. A fun game, and in many of my books, the dealer is a professional card sharp playing for the house to win money for the house.

Here is a scene from Luck of the Draw, capturing Royce’s skills at a poker table.

(www.amazon.com/dp/B0063VOS4E)

As Royce broke open a new deck of cards, he had no trouble pushing aside the ethics he lived by. Honesty and morality had no place at the poker table, not when Paige’s life and the life of their unborn child rested, literally, in the palms of his hands.

He’d spent the three days holed up in Waco due to the rain practicing the tricks Paige had taught him. This morning he shuffled the stiff cards with the ease and dexterity of an accomplished gambler.

Royce picked up his cards and looked them over. His heart beat fast at the sight of the two aces, and as Paige had taught him, he made sure that relief didn't reflect in his gaze.

“How many?” He looked to Mendoza seated across from him and all confidence he felt skidded to a halt. Mendoza no longer had that cocky arrogance about him. He had masked all feeling and thought, emitting a look so blank Royce thought he had dealt Mendoza the wrong hand.

“One,” Marcus answered.

As he tossed one card, face down, to the center of the table, Royce's confidence was restored. He hadn't dealt the wrong cards. By asking for only one card, Royce was certain the landlord was chasing after a full house, betting that the two pair he held would still be enough to beat Royce’s hand if he didn't get his card.

“Dealer will take three,” Royce announced then tossed his throw-away cards, face down, to the center of the table and dealt himself three cards. At the sight of the last card, a lone heart beat jolted him so hard it threatened to burst from his chest, but somehow he managed to keep his entire body from flinching.

“Senor Weston.” Mendoza caressed his chin with the side of his index finger. “Your senorita is going to make a lovely addition to my cantina.”

“Is that so?” Royce kept his gaze impassive.

The landlord’s smile broadened as he laid his cards on the table, face up. A pair of queens, a pair of tens, and an eight stared back at Royce, and for a long moment, a deafening silence filled the air.

“You accept defeat graciously, Senor.” Mendoza’s grin widened as he shoved his chair back from the table. “I would say I am sorry for your loss, but I am not. I will send your child to you after the senorita gives birth.”

“Sit down, Marcus,” Royce ordered tersely. “I have not shown my hand.”

Though his eyes narrowed, Mendoza’s tone remained friendly. “You are correct. It would be rude of me to leave the table without viewing your hand.”

A sharp retort hung on the edge of Royce’s tongue, one that would have the landlord turning red, but Royce swallowed the comment in exchange for ending the game. Slowly, with his gaze bearing down on Mendoza, he laid his cards on the table one at a time; an ace, a deuce, another ace, a five, and last, the third ace.

“Paige stays with me.” Royce's tone left no room for argument. And though he would have loved nothing more than to wipe the disbelieving, murderous look from Mendoza’s face, time was of the essence. Paige had been gone from his side too long.

Poker Alice

Alice fashionably dressed

Born in Sudbury, England in 1853, Alice Ivers is best known as the highly skilled female poker player and faro dealer who loved cigars. The only daughter of a school teacher, Alice’s childhood consisted of the best education and moral values. When she was twelve, her family immigrated to the United States and settled in Virginia, but with the Civil War raging and gold being discovered in the West, she and her family eventually moved to Lake City, Colorado.

As a young woman, with exceptional breeding, class and beauty, Alice was sought after by many men. The first man she favored was Frank Duffield, a mining engineer and gambler. It is believed that throughout her life Duffield was Alice’s one true love and she soon married him. Duffield’s job took the couple from one mining camp to another before they settled back in Lake City. There they enjoyed social parties and Alice loved the attention lavished upon her. She began joining her husband at the poker tables, where Duffield taught her everything he knew about the game. Some nights she sat in for him while he was at work. Because of her fine education, her math skills were exceptional and it wasn’t long before she was more adept at the game than her husband and gaining a bit of notoriety; females rarely ventured into a saloon and were never expected to be good poker players.

A few years into married life, Duffield was killed in a mine explosion. Alice quickly came to the conclusion she would now have to make her own way in the world and turned to gambling full time as a means to support herself. Shortly after she hit the tables, she earned the nickname ‘Poker Alice’.       

Leadville, Colorado

Finding work wasn’t difficult for Alice. She held many jobs in gaming houses throughout Colorado, to include Leadville and Alamosa. She kept her appearance neat, dressed in fashion, carried a .38 caliber revolver, and somewhere along the way, acquired a love for cigars. Often seen puffing on a stogie, if anyone rudely commented on her smoking habit, she’d pull out her gun and effectively put an end to their ribbing.

Alice found her way to Oklahoma and her fame spread there, too. She continued to win substantial amounts and made her way to New Mexico before moving to New York City. There she treated herself to new clothes and enjoyed the nightlife. With her funds nearly depleted, she left New York and headed back west, to the new mining town of Creede, Colorado. At forty years old, she took a job working eight hour shifts at the tables at Bob Ford’s Exchange. Bob’s claim to fame was having killed Jesse James. Many folks disliked his bragging, because at that time, Jesse James was still considered more of a hero than an outlaw. Eventually, Ed Kelly killed Ford in 1892. Alice witnessed the shooting and moved to Deadwood soon after.

Deadwood, South Dakota

In Deadwood, Alice took another job dealing stud. She met fellow dealer, Warren Tubbs, and the two struck up a friendship. Tubbs hailed from Sturgis, worked as a house painter by day and dealt at night, though his skills weren’t good. Alice saved Tubbs’ life when a drunk miner came into the saloon and tried to stab Tubbs. She shot the miner in the arm, and soon after Tubbs fell in love with Alice. They married, with the agreement Tubbs would stick to painting and Alice would continue with gambling. The couple had seven children, whom Alice kept away from the tables as she continued winning large sums of money to provide for her family. Once their children grew up and moved away, the couple retired to a chicken ranch north of Deadwood. Tubbs contracted pneumonia in 1910. He died on a cold winter’s night with a wish to be buried back in Sturgis. Alice drove his body back to Sturgis through a blizzard and pawned her wedding ring for payment for his burial.

Playing cards, circa 1800's

Alice remained in Deadwood and took another job dealing poker. At this time in her life, she changed her clothing from fashionable to plain attire and continued with her cigar smoking ways. She hired George Huckert to take care of her farm and when she owed him wages of more than one thousand dollars, she married him, reasoning it was cheaper to marry him than pay him what she owed him. Huckert was a loafer and spent most of time in the bars. Upon his passing, Alice was relieved and took back her name of Tubbs.

Life became tougher for Alice as she aged. Most of her money was gone and reform was fast becoming the rage in Deadwood and Sturgis. She opened her own gambling hall and catered to the soldiers at Ft. Meade. Several times she was arrested on gambling, prostitution, and alcohol charges. Each time, she beat the charges and was set free. She was also charged with killing a soldier and beat this rap as the jury agreed she killed the man in self-defense. Past the age of 70, Alice began having gall bladder troubles. With medicine reaching new heights, doctors convinced her to undergo a relatively new surgical procedure. She readily agreed, mostly due to the fact a fortune teller had told her she would live to one hundred. Sadly, Alice died during the operation. She is buried at St. Aloysius Cemetery located in the Black Hills. Ted Walker saved her home in Sturgis from demolition and had it moved to Junction Avenue. To this day, Alice remains a poker legend in Colorado and South Dakota.                

Saloons and Beer

courtesy of castleg.deviantart.com

When creating a western historical story, I like to present something factual from the era, even something as simple as a warming oven. I also like to have a saloon somewhere in the story. Sometimes, the saloon isn’t an important part of the story. Other times, it is. In Zanna’s Outlaw, Miller’s saloon provided the perfect setting for Buck to watch over the main thoroughfare without being detected. And though Buck and Miller had a love/hate relationship, Miller proved to be a good source for what Buck needed most—information pertaining to Buck’s enemies. In Lydia’s Gunslinger, Miller’s saloon again proved a wealthy source for the hero. Roth made a hefty profit at Miller’s, until Lydia put a stop her gunslinger owning soiled doves. More importantly, the saloon’s back room was a great place for Roth to spy on Lydia’s enemy. Cooper frequented Miller’s daily, giving Roth ample opportunity to plot against him. 

Sawdust covering a wooden floor, brass spittoons flanking a scratched bar, a large, plate glass window adorning the front window and slatted swinging doors thwapping when someone entered or exited; the old west saloon has always captured my attention. Closing my eyes, I can hear boot heels clicking across the floor, the murmur of voices around a poker table and the clinking of glasses. It wasn’t until I wrote the Revolving Point, Texas series did I wonder about the most important thing in a saloon—beer. Who brewed the beer? How was it shipped to the saloon? I was somewhat certain I knew the answer to the latter question, but the author within demanded I know for sure.  

        

courtesy of indianabeer.com

Nathan Lyman was one of the first men to open a brewery in the United States, in Rochester, NY, 1819. After him, breweries sprouted up throughout the century in big cities; Buffalo, Cincinnati, Chicago and Milwaukee to name a few. Ale was the first type of beer brewed, until the German migration to the United States introduced lager beer. Lager beer is lighter compared to ale and Americans liked the taste. They also preferred the new glassware introduced to saloons over the pewter mugs. Marketing strategies were as big back then as they are today. Brewers sent reps to saloons to entice saloon owners to only sell their beer. One of the perks offered was the glassware. Large brewery owners are also credited with opening saloons, with the intent to only sell their beer, as competition was fierce.   

Beer was stored in wooden barrels and shipped to saloons via horse-drawn wagons. I have a replica of one of these wagons on my entertainment center. Two things of interest I didn’t know, and really should put into a story, was some folks brewed their own beer. Others purchased beer from a local saloon to drink in the privacy and comfort of their own homes. Beer was carried in small tin pails known as 'Growlers'. Until now, I had never heard mention of beer having been consumed in homes. Only whiskey. Or sherry, for the ladies. While I’m not one who favors beer, the history behind the making of the drink, the shipping, and the marketing is as fascinating as the saloon itself.