Bingo History
Bingo History began in Italy in 1530 with a national lottery game called Lo Giuoco del Lotto D'Italia. The game was quite popular, despite the criticism of the Catholic Church, which frowned upon what it considered the random casting of lots. Gambling in the Middle Ages was associated directly with the devil. Bingo history is quite different than the practice today, of churches using bingo as a means to collect revenue for it's parishes and congregations.
In 1778, this bingo-like lottery game caught on in France. It suffered the same excitement from the masses and condemnation from the Church. The fury created by the game only inflamed public excitement. By the 1800's, lotteries were popular all over the European continent, in as many flavors as there were cultures to adopt it.
America and "Beano"
Bingo didn't reach the United States until the twenties, and even so, the play was extremely Americanized. The variant of the European lottery they played was was called "Beano" because players coverd the numbers on the card with pinto beans or lima beans. Special numbered discs, designed spefically for the purpose were made and pulled blindly from from a cigar box and called aloud.
During the history, the bingo game became very popular in rural areas, particularly in the south, where strong anti-gambling attitudes were relaxed with this new game. The vast majority of people didn't see the game as the same sort of risk as the normal gambling games they had so ardently banned.
Edwin Lowe - the father of "Bingo"
The Bingo history continues in 1929, when a toy salesman from New York named Edwin S. Lowe discovered the game in Georgia. Lowe was at a country fair and saw the excitement under the tent, as people crowded in to get their cards and beans. Lowe was inspired by the ferver of the country people playing the game.
Later that day, as Lowe sat in on a game, he heard someone yell "Bingo" instead of "Beano." Lowe realized this was marketing genius, and compete and absolute serendipity. Lowe wasted no time in going back to New York to market his new game.
Bingo Cards and Carl Leaflet
Lowe decided to market the game as "Bingo" and hired Columbia University math professor Carl Leaflet to help him create more random cards so that it was more difficult for anyone but a single player to win. Lowe managed to get the Bingo game to use over 6000 unique cards instead of 24. The strain on Lowe's constitution was remarkable, and the effort was extremely taxing to his mental faculties. In a few years, the unfortunate man succumbed to madness as a result of the mental strain of the task he was ask to perform.
The Modern Era of Bingo
Once the game was perfected however, Lowe found his best business was in church fundraisers. Odddly, the same Catholic Church that condemned the old Italian lottery as the work of the devil, now clamored for Lowe to provide them with unique bingo cards for their fundraising needs. Lowe managed to built up a large client base among the holy, and by the mid 30's, thanks to the debt of churches and the Great Depression, there were over 10,000 bingo games a week around the country.
Bingo Today
Today, in the US, bingo accounts for more than $90 million spent, not including the revenues at the online casinos. Many organizations use them as fundraisers, and many dedicated bingo parlors operate around the country to feed the nation's hunger for bingo. Bingo can be found in even the smallest of locales. The games cost little to produce, and offer a person a reasonable chance at a big prize for little risk. Many of bingo's most devoted players take their enthusiam and sense of humor to the bingo hall, wearing outlandish outfit and accessories in the hopes of influencing luck.
Online bingo is growing even faster, and there are many different online casinos offering bingo games.
Susan McClary - Senior Editor