The History of Poker
The History and Origins of Poker
When you try to trace the history of Poker you come across quite a few different versions so it is safe to say that the true origins of the game of Poker may never be really known.
One common historical fact is that Poker has been dated to the first or second decade of the 19th century. Poker appears to have come from gambling saloons of New Orleans in the United States of America, and in particular the famous floating Mississippi steamer saloons. The first known reference to Poker is in the publication entitled “Dragoon Campaigns to the Rocky Mountains” that was written my J Hildreth and published in 1836.
The early forms of Poker were played with a 20 card pack, with the Ace, King, Queen, Jack, and Ten of each suit present. These cards were dealt evenly amongst four players. It is believed that this was the birth of the winning hand of “Full House”, this is because it was the only combination in which all five cards were active.
It is believed that the 52 card deck was introduced to Poker between 1830 and 1845. One of the main reasons for introducing the 52 card deck was to allow more players to join in the game of Poker, which to that date had been limited to only four. Also with the 52 card deck came a new hand, the “Flush”. The flush had not been possible before due to the number of cards present from each suit would always be a full house if you had them all.
Poker was introduced to the United Kingdom by General Schenck, who was the American ambassador to Britain at that time. It was during a visit to Somerset that General Schenck was asked to teach the other guests how to play this, until then American game. General Schenck wrote a simple guide to playing Poker and gave it to the other guests. This guide was eventually published and a copy even found its way back to General Schenck.
Poker has evolved during the 20th century from many back room games to the present day casinos around the world. It’s history is rich with famous places and colorful characters. For example, in the Wild West of America, you could find a Poker table in every town, from coast to coast.
There are various variations of Poker. These include the most popular version that is now Texas Hold ‘Em as well as other variations such as:
- Omaha Hi
- Seven Card Stud
- Five Card Draw
- Caribbean Stud
PartyPoker.com Online Poker Table
Poker has become the number one card game in the world. You traditionally needed at least three people to play a decent game of Poker but with the advent and mass explosion of the online Poker scene it is now possible for single players to connect over the Internet and play Poker online against players from all over the world.