Gambling: Nevada's Formative Years

Although Carson City was humming with political activity as Nevada entered its first decades of statehood, the real action of the new state's life was a few miles to north east on the slopes of Sun Mountain.

There, the state's gold miners were busy devising methods to extract and refine the silver and gold for the Comstock.

Their success meant that Comstock, gold mining, and the lifestyle that went with it were to dominate the history of Nevada for years to come.

One prohibition help up as it did most other states--- no lottery was authorized by Nevada nor would the sale of lottery tickets be allowed.

Between 1869 and 1907, many changes in regulations and fees were made, with the main concern being where and when gaming could be conducted to go to the state and all other fees to the countries.

In 1871 and 1881, the Nevada Benevolent Association was authorized to conduct raffles and gift concerts.

For those with cash, gambling flourished until 1910, despite a serious depression that began in 1880 with the decline of the Comstock Lode.

Nevada's gamblers still collected their chips in the back rooms of hundreds of small saloons throughout the state.

In 1990, Jim Butler, an occasional miner, discovered new traces of gold and silver in Nevada's southwestern hills.

Within months, the hundreds of prospectors who poured into the area matched Butler's discovery with their own, and Nevada was once again the object of a great gold rush.

Tonopah and Goldfield became the new centers of mining activity, and with the miners came a revival of the rough-and-tumble lifestyle Nevada had known so well.

In 1909, there was a turnabout--- total prohibition--- all forms of gambling were again prohibited, the law to become effective on October 1910. Violation was now a felony, and doors could be broken down to seize equipment.

It was a repeat of the experience of the 1860s, during which gambling had, for four years, officially been illegal, although in fact it was widespread.

Gamblers were still around; they were just more discreet. All that really happened was a loss of revenue from the lack of license and fee receipts.

One of the reasons that Nevada's citizens tolerated the new gaming relaxation law so well was that virtually everyone assumed it would soon be repealed.

Upon the governor's recommendation, the legislature relaxed restrictions on gaming; social games could be played for drinks, cigars, or other prizes whose value did not exceed $2.

Also permitted were games in which the deal changed after each hand. Operators were required to have licenses.

During these years, the laws and their enforcement became less effective, and illegal operations increased and started taking business from the legal establishments.

This caused a decrease in state and local license fees.