The History of Slots Machines
Introduction: The History of Slots Machines
More especially so, if you consider that the very first machine in existence was way back in 1891. A couple of bright inventors from Brooklyn in New York, called Sittman and Pitt designed a machine with five spinning drums. The idea was to base a machine on the game of poker. Essentially, the player would put in a coin, pull a lever and the the five stud poker result would display once the drums became stationary. The was no financial payout. instead the winners could win goods like cigars and beers.
The First Reels
We had to wait until 1895 until reels made their first appearance in the history of slots machines. Charles Augustus Fey was the first to make a slots machine that is similar to those today you might find in any casino. Instead of the old spinning drums, he was making a machine with the card symbols being on display on the mechanical reels themselves. The cards on display were hearts, diamonds, spades, horseshoes and cracked Liberty Bells. This was also the first machine to offer an instant and automatic payout. The machine was christened “The Liberty Bell”. Oh…and the payout was just half a dollar. Fey didn’t sit on his laurels but kept on producing and upgrading his reel machines. Apart from the Liberty Bell he also invented other gambling machines, such as the Card Bell and the 4-11-44 machine, which were in production in his own factory. You can still see his original machine in the basement of the Liberty Belle saloon in Reno, Nevada as a historic artifact.
The History of Slots machines: Finder’s Keeper’s
Of course, as slots machines became more popular, competition for Fey’s machine started to grow. In 1905, a Chicago company released the Mills Liberty Bell. Now if this sounds like a rip-off, then there’s more to the story. It appears that Fey refused to sell his machines to other would be manufacturers, even for a licencing fee. And so one of his machines was stolen. Just a few months after the theft, a certain Herbert Stephen Mills came out with his own version of the gambling machine. See the connection? Some have said that the design was the result of a shared enterprise, but the real origin is now lost to time. The new machine from Mills quickly gained market share and proved even more popular than Fey’s’designs.
Prohibition Makes A Mark
By 1910, slots machines were everywhere across the US. Mills even expanded in the European market, and by this time was making around 30,000 a year.It didn’t take long for the Puritanical US government to implement bans on all slots machines that paid out with cash in 1909. But you can’t just stop a popular trend. It will always find a means by which to beat any new legislation. Normally be moving the goal post sideways. And so it was to be with slots machines. Instead of calling themselves “slots” and giving out cash prizes, they took on the new name of “trade simulators” and provided prizes for certain combinations. This is where the fruit and bar design we can now see in many slots machines came about. The “Operator Bell” was the name of the first machine to display these new symbols. The fruits were the symbol of actual candies and chewing gum that you could win. The bars were from the Bell-Fruit and Gum Company.
Where There’s A Will, There’s A Way
As we know, ten years later in 1919, the US government shut down all consumption of alcohol. As you can imagine this had a devastating impact on slot machine sales and usage. But, as with all work-around’s, the slot machine re-positioned themselves as “cash dispensing machines”. The idea was that if you were going to break the law by selling illegal alcohol, then why not still run your slots machines. All this achieved was to make the slot machine more popular than ever.
The Silent Bell
The history of slots machines didn’t see any real change until the 1930’s. Before this the slot machine was a noisy affair, But then came along the Silent Bell which was much quieter. At the same time, the “double jackpot” was introduced. This allowed the player the chance to have multiple wins in succession. The design of the cabinets also became more varied. Before the old machines were made from cast iron. But these newer ones were manufactured from wood, making them lighter and more transportable. With these new designs, like The Roman Head, The Castle Front and The Lion Head, the machines were able to hold the attention of gamblers for longer, thus increasing their spend. Then in 1931, all gambling was to be legal in the state of Nevada allowing the placing and the playing of casino slot machines everywhere throughout the state.
The History of Slots Machines: Money Honey
In the early 1960’s, Bally, a manufacturer of pin-balls started to take an interest in slots machines. “Money Honey” was the first machine with electronic controls. It featured sound effects and could take multiple types of coin sizes. It was also the first slots machine to have the now traditional coin hopper. Up until this time, any winners were paid out by hand. With the introduction of the coin hopper, players could continue playing as their winning remained at arms reach. And that generated more income for the establishment. Money Honey was a real game changer in the slots machine industry, and the company continued at the forefront of invention and change.By the 1970’s Bally controlled around 90% of the slots machine marketplace. In 1978, they introduced the “Hi Boy”, which was the first “upright” slots machine. During this period, Atlantic City raised the wager amounts allowed on slot machines so that they could be played with $25 to $100.
Into The Modern Age
Stepping onto the 1990’s, and we can see even greater changes in the world of gaming slots machines. For a start we have the invention of the first electronic “virtual wheel”. Bally produced the first one in 1994 and it quickly became the most popular type of machine. But a new manufacturer was waiting in the wings. International Game Technology gained market share quickly after the introduction of their machine with a random number generator. This was a game changer in that now machines could actually simulate the spinning of the reels and make sure that the outcome was really random. Because this allowed for a much great variation of the odds on offer, it meant that prizes could start building up to even greater proportions. Also it meant saying goodbye to pulling a lever on the side. A simple press of a button was enough. Finally, IGT made it’s greatest mark in the history of slots machines by introducing network and sites with progressive jackpots into the mix. Thus began the age of multi-million dollar jackpots.
Then fast forwards to today, the age of the internet. Casinos now have an even greater freedom, though it’s the software providers who really rule the roost. There are thousands of designs and always new one coming to market. Online jackpot sites really are a players paradise and has come a long way if one thinks back to the old and un-wielding cast iron machines of the past.
