History of Bingo

Bingo has been a staple gaming option at most Indian casinos since their inception. However, bingo has been around for much, much longer. Bingo was a form of lottery that started in 1530 in France and was called "Lo Giuoco del Lotto d'Italia" and by the eighteenth century, the game had matured and now used numbered cards and tokens to play the game (Source: www.wikipedia.com). The game was also used in Germany, but it was used much more differently. The game was used to teach children spelling, animal names and multiplication tables.

Edwin Lowe was in Atlanta in 1929 when he saw a game called "beano" being played with rubber stamps and numbered cardboard sheets. He enjoyed the game and took it home to his friends in New York. His friends enjoyed the game and during one session, he became excited and accidentally called out "bingo". The name stuck and he is credited with remaining the game. By the 1940's the game of bingo was firmly placed in our culture. (Source: www.strangelife.com)

With that one simple game of beano transformed to bingo, several variations appeared. The six most popular forms of bingo include (Source: www.strangelife.com/bingodoc/bingohist.html):

U-Pick'Em: The player picks a certain amount of numbers and after time is called, a monitor is watched to see if the number has been called - much like keno. If the player has the proper set of numbers for form the designated pattern, the game is won.

Quick Shot: The numbers are already marked on playing cards. The player purchases the playing cards in a sealed envelope. The numbers are displayed on a monitor and the player opens the sealed pack and matches numbers to the numbers on the cards the attempt to win the game.

Bonanza: Forty-three numbers are pre-drawn. The players purchase pre-marked cards in sealed packs. The player attempts to match their cards to the numbers drawn. If no bingo is called, then one number is called. If no bingo, the player holds onto the card and during each game thereafter, another number is drawn and this continues until bingo is called. It is a form of progressive bingo.

Horse Racing: This variation is for fifteen players. Each player is assigned a column on the board. Numbers are then called. The winner of the game is the first player to have their column completely filled.

Table: This is a tribal gaming adaptation where the rules of bingo including the cards and the markers are used, but the game itself has the speed and excitement of a traditional gaming table.

Electronic: Appears and act like traditional bingo, but is used by tribes who want gaming but are unable to reach a compact (agreement) with their state government. This form of bingo is exempt from state regulations.

No matter which version is played, bingo is ingrained in our culture from simple home games, to churches and to tribal nations.