The First Slot Machine
The first slot machines were very primitive, mechanical gambling machines, a lot more different than what people are used to see today. Before the invention of the electronic slot machines where you only had to push a button, slot machines were operated with a lever with which slot players had to activate the reels. Generally they had only 3 reels, and as they evolved slot manufacturers began producing 5 reel slots, which today dominate the market.
Slot machines have various names in different parts of the world. In Australia/New Zealand they’re called “pokies”, short from “poker machines” because the first slots had poker symbols on the reels; in Canada they’re called simply “the slots”; in Britain people call them “fruit machines” because of the various fruit symbols for which they are best known; and in the USA just “slot machines”. All in all, they are very much loved by all.
Timeline of Important Slot Events Throughout History
1891 – The Precursor
This was the year when the precursor of the first slot machine appeared invented by Sittman and Pitt in New York. It had five drums that acted as reels, a lever to activate them and 50 card symbols. It was widely used across bars and was called One-Armed Bandit.
The first electromechanical slot machine was introduced in 1963, and the first video slot followed in 1976. These innovations made slot machines more exciting than ever and helped them become the most popular form of gambling in the casino. Finally, in 1894-5, a Bavarian-born San Franciscan named Charles Fey created the “Liberty Bell”, the first true slot machine. This used three spinning reels with five symbols on each. These symbols were the eponymous bells, hearts, spades, diamonds, and horseshoes. The first slot machine was invented by Charles Fey in San Francisco California U.S. Many, however, believe that Charles Fey completed the first slot machine in 1895. The original machine was of course much simpler mechanism.
1895 – The First Slot
This was the year when the first true slot machine was invented by Charles Fey in California. It had only 3 reels, it had much simpler mechanism, a total of just five reel symbols and could give automatic payouts. The biggest win was ten nickels. It was named Liberty Bell and had much greater success than its predecessor. Some argue that it was actually invented in 1887.
1907 – Fruit Symbols
The first fruit symbols on slot reels appeared when Herbert Mills developed his own slot machine, the Operator Bell, which served as a competition to the Liberty Bell manufactured by Charles Fey. The demand was big and Fey couldn’t produce enough slots in time, but refused to sell the rights to the machine to bigger companies, so Herbert Mills tried to compete with his new invention.
1963 – Goodbye to the Lever
Bally Manufacturing managed to develop the first electromechanical slot machine that could make a payout of 500 coins without the help of an attendant. Soon enough the lever became obsolete and the popularity of this slot, called Money Honey, helped electronic games become dominant.
1976 – The First Video Slot
The 70s saw the birth of the first true video slots in California. It was a glorious decade for slots. The machine had a display mounted on slot machine cabinet and soon enough the Nevada State Gaming Commission approved it. The technology for this video slot was developed by Fortune Coin Co, which later was bought by the famous IGT in 1978.
1990s – Online Casinos
In 1994 the first online casino that offers online video slots appeared running on the software of the already famous software developer, Microgaming.
1996 – The First Second Screen Bonuses
Perhaps this is the moment when video slots affirmed themselves as first-class casino games. Previously video slots were more of marginalized and slot players weren’t offered any perks like table game players were. Second screen bonus video slot machines helped casinos attain even larger profits than before.
2012 – The Profits
In 2012 it was reported that British slot lovers spent nearly £5 billion on playing their favorite video slot, online and land-based. This figure accounts only for the profits in the United Kingdom alone.
The Future of Video Slots
We’ve come a long way since the Liberty Bell without a doubt. Today video slots are simply computers with microprocessors and fancy colors. Online video slots are even more colorful, with 3D graphics and some of the biggest jackpots known to gamblers. If only the first slot players from the 19th century could see how these games have evolved, and who knows what the future holds.
Take a look at any online slots site, and you’ll find a stunning variety of games. From classic three-reel fruit machines to epic video slots with in-game bonus features and levels, slot machines have come a long way since their creation.
Who Developed The First Slot Machine
I decided to take a trip into slot machine history to find out who invented slot machines and how they developed over time. This post is a summary of what I found out. Slot machine fans, this post is for you.
The First Slot Machines
Liberty Bell Slot Machine
Have you ever wondered how slot machines got their name? It’s actually a shorthand way to say nickel-in-the-slot machine, a testament to the old days when you slipped a nickel into the slot of a simple fruit machine.
By this definition, slots gaming pioneers invented the first machines in the 1880s. Bars and saloons in the Old West offered them. It involved punters dropping a coin in the slot to witness two toy horses racing or something similar. Punters wouldn’t win anything for these games, but they would often bet with each other.
There were a few different iterations of slot machines, such as the machines developed by New York-based Sittman and Pitt. This game cost a nickel to play and had five drums which would show up. They awarded payouts for making poker hands with these cards.
In 1894, on the other side of the United States, a San Francisco-based inventor named Charles August Fey invented the first version of what we’d recognize as a classic slot machine.
Shortly after this, he built the 4-11-44, which was so successful that he quit his job to build them full time.
By 1898, Fey had created the first three-reel slot machine. These had automatic payouts built-in, with the coins falling out of the machine and into the tray below. He then built the Liberty Bell slot in 1899, which had bells, horseshoes, and other symbols of luck on the reels.
Slot Machines History and Evolution
Based on the history of early slot machines outlined above, we can say that Charles August Fey invented the first slot machine proper. However, I wanted to go deeper and learn more about how slot machines evolved and became what they are today. The following is a brief history of slot machines.
- By 1909, Fey’s slot machines, and those created by his competitors has become such a success that they were banned. Moral forces such as the church petitioned for them to be banned, and in this year, the government of San Francisco capitulated to their demands. This caused slots production to shift to Chicago.
- During the Great Depression in the 1930s, the popularity of slot machines continued to grow. They spread far and wide across the United States.
- By 1951, slot machines were almost completely banned all across the United States. The exception was Nevada, with the boom-town of Las Vegas continuing to service gamblers from across the world. However, it was a well-known secret that slots still existed in private clubs all over the country.
- In the midst of financial need after World War II, governments across the world embraced slot machines. Why the sudden change in tune? You guessed it, tax revenue. With a newfound optimism and liberal attitude, and a need for taxes to rebuild from the rubble, the slots industry boomed like never before.
- Like most booms, this one produced a hyper-competitive environment in which developers created all sorts of new slot machines. Technology had advanced since the ban, and developers created new electronic slot machines with more complicated payout schemes.
- Video slot machines started to pop up in 1975, but surprisingly, they didn’t succeed at first. It turns out that land-based slots players preferred to pull the handle and watch the reels spin in front of them.
- The first progressive jackpot slots came online in the mid-eighties. This was a watershed moment in the history of slot machines. Since then, jackpots have grown exponentially. In Las Vegas today, slots like Megabucks can pay tens of millions.
- In 1988, the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act became law. This recognized tribal sovereignty and made it more difficult for states to enforce gambling bans on tribal lands. This led to the rapid expansion of the Native American gambling industry.
- In the early days of the 21st century, casinos came under pressure from the rapid rise of online casinos. This, some would say uncoincidentally, led to the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act of 2006.
- Today, online slots are still illegal in the USA, but land-based machines are alive and well. Despite being illegal in America, lots of players from around the world play online slots at a rapidly growing number of online casinos.
5 Interesting Slot Machine Facts
- Did you know that slot machines and other electronic gaming machines produce roughly 70% of profits for most casinos?
- The largest slot machine payout in history occurred in 2003. A software engineer from Los Angeles won $39.7 million while playing the Megabucks slot in Las Vegas. The wager cost him $100.
- A World War II veteran named Elmer Sherwin won two multimillion-dollar jackpots in his life. The first was a $4.6 million win in the Mirage on opening night, and the second was a $21 million win which occurred 16 years later.
- A Chicago-based operator named Herbert Mills introduced the first slots with fruit symbols in 1907. Those symbols can still be found in lots of slot machines today. Any cultural meme created today would do extremely well if it lasted that long.
- When the catastrophic San Francisco earthquake hit in 1906, most of the original Liberty Bell slot machines were destroyed. Only four survived, and today, any remaining antique slots are worth quite a bit more than a nickel!
Summary
Mills Slot Machine History
Slot machines have come a heck of a long way since Charles Fey tinkered with the first Liberty Bell machines in his basement. He probably couldn’t have even imagined how big his invention would become. The number of slot machines in existence today is innumerable. Tens of millions of machines are available in casinos, pubs, bars, cafes, and gaming halls across the world.
Slot machines will continue to evolve and change, and they won’t escape the VR revolution.
Will we someday see a billion-dollar progressive jackpot? Right now, it’s unthinkable, but I’ll bet you that had you told Charles Fey that someone would win $39.7 million on a Vegas slot, he would have laughed in your face.
This has been the history of slot machines to date. Where we go from here is anyone’s guess!
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