history of riverboat gambling

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The History of Riverboat Gambling

There are various areas of the world that just seem synonymous with gambling. When people hear the name Las Vegas they picture gambling of a flashy, mass entertainment proportion. Macau ’ s gambling culture brings a real Asian flavour to gambling, with many inevitably comparing it to Vegas. Monte Carlo delivers gambling connotations of wealth and prestige. Obviously, it is not just physical areas where gambling has a strong presence, with the web and mobile space being  dominated by PartyCasino  and other big names in the industry.

Another, yet somewhat less spectacular, sight that can only be associated with gambling is the steam propelled riverboat of certain states in the USA. How did these iconic vessels come to be known for hosting casinos, and what is the current status of riverboat casinos today?

On Water, But Not Land

There is a network of rivers that penetrate inland from the Gulf of Mexico up through the United States,  most famously the Mississippi River . In the 19 th  Century the rivers provided a fantastic way to transport goods from town to town up and down the bodies of water. This in turn became a popular method of passenger transport, with travellers using the boat to socialise. One of the most popular forms of entertainment was  play at online Irish casino , and therefore this pastime became highly popular aboard the vessels. 

There were also, and still are today, laws that prohibited gambling on land. However, the proprietor s  of these boats took advantage of the loophole not extending these laws to establishments on water. Even today,  riverboats are still to be found on the Mississippi  and is still considered one of the best for cruises. Certain rivers acted as state lines, so it was sometimes argued that the gamblers could not be classified as being in one state or another while steaming down a river.

Railroads and War

As mentioned, the riverboats were first and foremost a means of transportation and enjoyed such success due to it being the quickest and most reliable means of travel and delivery of goods. However, when railroads started to spread across the country, they opened up new routes that got people around in a more direct manner. The trains also cut days off travel and therefore started to overtake the riverboats in popularity.

Around the same time the  American Civil War  broke out, a period where much of the fighting was done in the Southern States which defied the laws laid out by the North. This meant that riverboat entertainment almost came to a complete end.

The Riverboats of Today

Unlike the boats of old, which used to set off on long journeys to various destinations, the vessels of now mostly remain docked and very seldom actually take to the open waters. However, one will still be able to undergo the traditional experience that thousands enjoyed before casinos became what we are familiar with today.

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How Riverboat Gambling Became Riverboat Gaming

Kevin has been involved in the gambling industry since the ‘80s. From winning tournaments to casino management, he’s ultimately done it all. Throughout the years, he’s written for various iGaming publications on topics such as the legal landscape of online casinos and strategies behind winning. His favorite game is blackjack.

Cash-strapped states across the South and Midwest in the late eighties and early nineties were desperate for a new source of cash revenue that didn’t raise taxes. Gambling seemed like an easy way out, but it was going to be a hard sell to dubious voters.

But what if they used the allure of the old riverboat gambling myths and the promise of using the riverboat casinos to keep the gambling scourge at arm’s length from impacted communities? Could they sell this new, sanitized riverboat gaming to their constituents?

The Evolution of Gaming on America’s Rivers

We will explore the history of riverboat gaming in America from the early 19th century right into the 21st. We will discuss how it morphed and was delicately managed to become a product that a broad number of people could support a few decades ago, before starting another slow decline, and we take a closer look at some of its few bright remaining stars.

• ⛴ The History of Riverboat Gambling
• ⛴ The Beginnings of Riverboat Gaming
• ⛴ A Few of the Best Riverboat Casinos Remaining
• ⛴ Conclusion

The History of Riverboat Gambling

The first steamboat to make the trip down the Ohio and then the Mississippi was aptly named New Orleans, and she made her inaugural trip in 1811. For the next 100 years, these boats would define commerce along the nation’s mighty rivers. And with commerce comes con men.

The huge sums of money that came from moving much of the fledgling nation’s goods up and down the rivers would prove to be a powerful temptation. While much of the gambling that soon developed on these long, slow trips along the river was legal, many of the men who came to play were on the wrong side of the law .

Not even two decades into the new steamboat trade and there were articles in the Eastern papers about the con men, card sharps, and confidence scams being run on every bumpkin that set foot on a boat. In 1835, the townsfolk in Vicksburg had had enough; they lynched 5 of the “professional gamblers” and burned every Faro table in town, which was stated to be in the dozens.

Much like the frontiersman who preceded them and the Wild West lawmen who would come later, these sharply dressed, supremely confident riverboat gamblers who plied their way on the steamboats of the Mississippi using only their luck and some “skills” they’d picked up along the way were the subject of many salacious headlines and stories in their day. Despite their many obvious flaws, an almost reverence was bestowed on them as archetypical American heroes.

The Beginnings Of Riverboat Gaming

The hay day of the Riverboat gambler started to fade in the 1860s during the Civil War, and then with the advent of railroads, they were soon all but forgotten. But in the early 1990s, states desperate for tax revenue and looking at the success of Las Vegas and Atlantic City decided to retest the waters of riverboat gambling.

This time, it was a way of introducing limited casino operations only along the waterways of the State’s rivers, selling it to their constituents as a diversion and pastime. Thus, the term riverboat gaming was needed . This was to be entertainment and frivolity, none of those card sharps and hustlers from the good ole days. So, a new term was coined.

Iowa led the riverboat race with the Diamond Lady in Bettendorf in April 1991. But riverboat gaming would soon come to Illinois, Mississippi, Missouri, Louisiana , and other states along the Mississippi and other large rivers like the Missouri and Ohio and even the Fox and Red Rivers.

Used mainly as a stalking horse for the eventual opening of land-based casinos in most of these states, many gamblers found the cramped quarters, the limited selection of slots and tables, and most egregious of all, the ability to only embark or disembark while the boat was at the pier, to be a let down from the Las Vegas style experience that they had been promised.

In Iowa, the first land-based casinos made an appearance in just three years. In every State, some accommodations were made , from no longer having to cruise the dangerous rivers to being allowed to move on to barges over the river to being able to move to land as long as you were adjacent to the river. This was a push generally called dock-side gaming, which meant that the actual return of elegant paddle wheelers with blackjack, roulette, and slot machines prowling the Mississippi again lasted less than a decade.

Dock-side gaming was far safer and allowed gamblers to come and go as they pleased , which drove casino revenues much higher. Also, the ability in some states to move either onto barges or land-based casinos adjacent to piers saw some spectacular casinos get built that could finally meet the promise of a Las Vegas experience.

A Few Of The Best Riverboat Casinos Remaining

If you are going to visit one of the grand old ladies of the river, we think that you should start with the actual riverboats that once traveled the Mississippi, and of these, the Amelia Belle is one of the most iconic .

Situated about an hour and a half outside New Orleans, deep in Cajun Country, this beautiful riverboat gambling hall has over 30,000 square feet of gaming space , 800 slots, and a dozen table games. Before she was damaged during Hurricane Katrina, she sailed up the river from the port of New Orleans several times a day in the mid-90s, but she now sits permanently in Bayou Bouef, her expedition days behind her.

Since Louisiana has kept its premise of at least gambling on a boat, even if its moored in a giant pool or cemented to the dock, longer than most other of the original riverboat casino states, it’s no wonder we can find most of the truly breathtaking and best riverboat casinos there.

Another of the must-see gambling boats sits on the Red River in Shreveport, Louisiana. Chosen for its 20-minute proximity to the Texas border and only two and a half hours drive from Dallas, Shreveport was once a thriving riverboat gambling town and one of the country’s premier riverboat casino locations. But the Indian tribes in Oklahoma, which sit only an hour outside of Dallas to the North, have taken some of their business.

Still, there are several other riverboats operating in Shreveport, but what we think makes the Sam’s Town Property, one of the best riverboat casinos in Louisiana , is that they’ve turned a 30,000-square-foot gaming boat into a destination resort. They have a 500+ room hotel directly adjacent and tied into the property with four restaurants including a really nice steak house and lots of other amenities. The boat itself has over 1000 slots and more than 27 table games.

One of the best riverboat casinos outside of Louisiana is the Grand Victoria in Elgin, Illinois. Built back in 1995, she was spared the dangers of cruising the Fox River in 1999, when Illinois was one of the last states to end their riverboat gaming rules that required the boats to leave their docks. Today, this 30,000-foot boat has room for 1100 slots and almost 30 tables and even sports an onboard buffet and three other restaurants. She is one of the prettier examples of the early 1990s boats that you will see as well, and it is well worth your time to get a good vantage point and take in her lines.

While both the age of riverboat gamblers and its more recent short-lived renaissance of riverboat gaming are now a thing of the past, the allure of cruising the mighty Mississippi while making your living playing cards and shooting dice will probably live on into the distant future. There is something about the water flowing past and the land slipping by out the window that just seems to call for a quick hand of poker or a spin on the roulette wheel.

It’s a call back to a time when the men and women who traveled these waterways were used to risking everything in order to follow their dreams. Get out there and check out some of those boats, wander the decks, play a hand or two of blackjack, and contemplate that river streaming by while you still have a chance to see a dying American breed , the last of the riverboat casinos.

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The Legacy and Historical Influence of Riverboat Casinos in the United States

Welcome aboard as we set sail into the captivating world of riverboat casinos in the United States . On this page, we’ll walk you through their legal status and historical implications, explore the where, what, and why of these floating gaming venues, and finally, take a close look at the modern condition of riverboat gambling.

As we explore the ins and outs of this unique chapter in American gaming history, we’ll also take a glance at if riverboat casinos have left a mark on the WV online gambling scene and gambling in the US in general.

• Legal Status of Riverboat Gambling
• Boat Casinos Regulation in Various States
• History of Riverboat Gambling
• Popular Riverboat Casinos

The Legal Status of Riverboat Gambling

Historically, casino boats were allowed in many states, mostly those with access to the Mississippi River. Today, only six states still allow this form of gambling:

Mississippi

Gambling boats are essentially floating casinos operating on designated waterways . They offer a wide variety of gambling activities just like land-based casinos, including slots , table games , and poker .

Each state with legal riverboat gambling has its own regulatory body responsible for licensing and ensuring compliance with state laws and regulations. These regulations typically address aspects such as gambling activities allowed, revenue sharing with the state, security measures, responsible gambling practices, and environmental considerations.

While sharing similarities with land-based casinos, riverboat casinos face additional regulations due to their unique setting, such as:

• Licensing requirements . Land-based casinos typically have more stringent licensing requirements than riverboat casinos. For instance, land-based casinos may be required to undergo a more rigorous background check and financial audit process compared to riverboat casinos;
• Location restrictions . There are usually fewer restrictions on riverboat casino locations than on those of the brick-and-mortar venues. For instance, land-based casinos might not be allowed to operate in certain areas, such as residential neighborhoods or near schools. Riverboat casinos, in turn, are more flexible when it comes to location, as they can be moored on rivers that flow through various areas;
• Taxation . The taxation of land-based casinos and riverboat casinos can vary depending on the state. In some cases, land-based casinos may be subject to higher tax rates than riverboat casinos;
• Building codes . Land-based casinos are typically required to meet more stringent building codes than riverboat casinos. This is because land-based casinos are permanent structures, while riverboat casinos are considered temporary structures;
• Inspection and enforcement . Land-based casinos usually undergo more frequent inspections and stricter enforcement of regulations compared to riverboat casinos.

Generally, the regulation of land-based casinos tends to be more strict and comprehensive than the regulation of any casino on the Mississippi River . The reason is likely that land-based casinos are considered to have a greater impact on the surrounding community , both in terms of economic benefits and social costs.

State-by-State Riverboat Gambling Regulations

As of 2024, it’s legal to run and visit a riverboat casino in six states. Let’s take a closer look at each of them:

Here, riverboat casinos are allowed on the Mississippi River , the Illinois River , and the Des Plaines River . The casinos must be located at least 300 feet from the shore and be accessible to the public by land or water . Riverboat casinos in Illinois are regulated by the Illinois Gaming Board .

In Indiana, boat casinos can operate on the Ohio River , the Indiana Harbor , and the Patoka Lake Reservoir . They must be located at least 600 feet from the shore . Riverboat casinos in Indiana are regulated by the Indiana Gaming Commission .

In this state, it’s legal for riverboat casinos to operate on the Mississippi River and the Missouri River . They must be located at least 300 feet from the shore and are regulated by the Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission .

A riverboat casino in Louisiana is allowed to operate on the Mississippi River , the Red River , and the Gulf of Mexico as long as they are located at least 300 feet from the shore . The casinos here are regulated by the Louisiana Gaming Control Board .

Obviously, a riverboat casino in Mississippi can be located on the Mississippi River at least 300 feet from the shore . Boat casinos in Mississippi are regulated by the Mississippi Gaming Commission .

Last but not least, Missouri riverboat casinos are allowed on the Mississippi River and the Missouri River at least 300 feet from the shore . Riverboat casinos in Missouri are regulated by the Missouri Gaming Commission .

Brief History of Riverboat Casinos

Explore the history of riverboat casinos in the United States, tracing their origins, development, and impact on both the gambling industry and American culture.

19th Century: The Origins of Riverboat Gambling

The roots of riverboat gambling can be traced back to the 19th century when steamboats were the primary mode of transportation along the Mississippi River. As passengers went on long journeys, gambling became a popular pastime to pass the time. While gambling activities were generally illegal on land at that time, boats provided a loophole, as they were considered to be outside of state jurisdiction.

Early 20th Century: Decline and Revival

The invention of railroads in the early 20th century led to a logical decline in riverboat travel, and respectively, riverboat gambling. However, the 1970s saw a reappearance of interest in riverboat casinos, primarily because of the push to revitalize urban areas.

1990s: Expansion and Legalization

The 1990s marked a period of significant growth for riverboat casinos. Several states legalized riverboat gambling, and the industry expanded rapidly. By the late 1990s, there were over 150 riverboat casinos operating in the United States.

2005: Hurricane Katrina and Its Devastating Blow

In August 2005, Hurricane Katrina struck the Gulf Coast, causing widespread destruction and displacement. The storm severely impacted the boat casino industry in Mississippi and Louisiana, with several casinos suffering significant damage or complete destruction.

Late 2010s: Post-Katrina Recovery and Adaptation

The consequences of Hurricane Katrina brought significant changes to the riverboat casino industry. While some casinos managed to rebuild and reopen, others had to close permanently. The industry also faced increased competition from brick-and-mortar casinos, which were gaining popularity at that time.

Today: A Mature Industry

Today, a casino boat remains a popular form of entertainment in the United States. However, the industry has matured and consolidated, with the number of riverboat casinos decreasing in recent years. Despite these changes, riverboat casinos continue to be an important economic driver in many regions.

Popular Riverboat Casinos in the US

Now that we know all the theory about riverboat gambling, let’s get to practice and take a look at the most popular water casinos in the United States.

The Grand Victoria Casino – Elgin, Illinois

Located along the beautiful Fox River, The Grand Victoria Casino is a home (or rather a boat) of true gaming elegance. Known as the largest riverboat casino in Illinois, it boasts an impressive 65,000 square feet of gaming space including slots, table games, and a poker room. The casino also offers a variety of dining and entertainment options, including a steakhouse, a buffet, and a concert venue.

Ameristar Casino Vicksburg – Vicksburg, Mississippi

The Ameristar Casino Vicksburg is one of the oldest and most crowded riverboat casinos in Mississippi with over 50,000 square feet of gaming space . The wide choice of slots, table games, and poker tables is complemented by all kinds of entertainments, from the flavors of a diverse buffet to comedy clubs and nightclubs.

Horseshoe Casino – Bossier City, Louisiana

The Horseshoe Casino is one of the largest riverboat casinos in Louisiana and one of the most popular. It features over 100,000 square feet of gaming space , including slots, table games, and a poker room. The casino also offers a variety of dining and entertainment options, so players can choose between a steakhouse, a buffet, a concert venue, and others.

Sam’s Town Casino – Shreveport, Louisiana

Sam’s Town Casino is a popular destination for all kinds of gaming enthusiasts in and out of state. With a gaming space of over 34,000 square feet , this casino offers an intimate yet exhilarating experience. Beyond the slots, table games, and poker room, Sam’s Town welcomes gamers to savor a culinary journey with a steakhouse, a buffet, and a unique entertainment experience at the in-house bowling alley.

What is the Diamond Lady casino boat?

The Diamond Lady Riverboat Casino was a paddlewheel riverboat casino that operated on the Mississippi River in Bettendorf, Iowa, from 1991 to 2008. In 2021, the Diamond Lady sank during a severe winter storm. It was later raised and brought to shore, where it remains today. The future of the Diamond Lady is uncertain, but it is possible that it will be restored and reopened as a casino or museum.

Why do casinos have to be on water in the US?

Casinos in the US don’t necessarily have to be on the water, but there are some casinos that are. This practice originated when gambling laws were more restrictive on land, and the association of riverboat gambling with waterborne transportation became a legal requirement in some states.

Why are casinos on the water so popular?

Riverboat casinos are popular for their unique charm and historical allure. The on-water setting offers players a distinctive and memorable gaming experience, contributing to the popularity of these establishments. Additionally, the regulations associated with riverboat gambling create a controlled and regulated environment that appeals to both operators and players.

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History of Riverboat Gambling on the Mississippi

The South has always been at least somewhat friendly to gambling due to the rise of the riverboat in the early 1900s. Games of chance were kept on the water so that anti-gambling laws wouldn’t apply. Games like poker and roulette took place on grand riverboats, even if the ship never left the dock.

This tradition was greatly reduced when the railroad became the main way to transport both goods and people, but some riverboats remain in the South today. In Mississippi and Louisiana, especially, retired steamboats are now used for river cruising and for gambling in places like Vicksburg.

Online casinos are one of the latest innovations in the casino industry. Since the rise of technological advancements, they are solid competitors to U.S.-based land-based casinos. Many gambling restrictions still remain in the South and across the ocean. For example, every casino in the UK gets licensed by the UK Gambling Commission.

The regulations of the U.S. online casino market have led to developers existing who only get associated with U.S. casinos and are not available at UK-based gaming sites. Some famous developers for the U.S. market are RealTime Gaming, Relax Gaming, Rival Gaming, Elk Studios and Betsoft.

But for those players who want the old-time experience of dressing up and boarding a grand steamboat, the South has plenty for them. Just look along the Mississippi River from Missouri to Louisiana. According to Visit Mississippi , the first steamboat to travel the Mississippi River was the New Orleans, whose October 1811 maiden voyage began in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The New Orleans stopped in Natchez in December 1811 before continuing to its final port in New Orleans.

Wealthy Southerners could afford to travel by steamboat, and some were ornately decorated in the Victorian style. The riverboat casinos that remain today continue that grand tradition, with music playing onboard, restaurants available to players and even live entertainment offered regularly.

So, if you want to step back in time and experience the old South by river—without all the outlaws and pirates —consider a riverboat cruise or evening of gaming.

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A Guide To The Most Iconic Riverboat Casinos In The US 

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Talk about casino destinations and you’ll most likely think of Las Vegas, Atlantic City or, if you are travelling outside the US, maybe Monaco or Macau.

Yet what are called “land based” or “bricks and mortar” casinos to differentiate them from the online versions are not necessarily on land or made of bricks and mortar.” To: “Yet what are called “land based” or “bricks and mortar” casinos to differentiate them from the online versions like 1xbet India online casino, are not necessarily on land or made of bricks and mortar.

We refer, of course, to riverboat casinos, a little slice of Americana that’s as American as Super Bowl Sunday or Thanksgiving turkey. Riverboat casinos conjure up images of the Mississippi and Mark Twain complete with white suit, top hat and cigar. There are more than 60 riverboat casinos operating in the USA and every single one of them has a story to tell. Here, we highlight a handful of the very best.

The Grand Victoria, Elgin

Our first stop is not on the Mississippi at all, but on the Fox River in Elgin, 50 miles north west of Chicago . Owned and operated by Caesars Entertainment, the Grand Victoria really is a slice of Las Vegas on the Illinois waterfront.  With more than 1,000 slots and video poker terminals and 36 tables, there’s a great choice of games.

If all that gambling whets your appetite, there are four dining options on board, including the highly rated Buckingham’s Steakhouse and Lounge.

Casino Queen, Marquette  

The Casino Queen would look like a lifeboat if it was moored alongside the Grand Victoria, but that is all part of its charm. It offers a more intimate and personalized experience, and although there are only eight tables, they host an intriguing variety of games that are not commonly found in land (or water) based casinos. If you know how to gamble online in the US , you’ve probably seen fusion blackjack and 21+3 at US online casinos. The Casino Queen gives you an opportunity to play them in real casino surroundings.

When you step ashore, there is an adjacent 31-acre entertainment complex with a variety of attractions and a huge choice of dining options.

The Amelia Belle, Amelia  

At last, we arrive in Louisiana, where the Amelia Belle lies nestled in the Avoca Island Cutoff waterway. This classic four-story riverboat looks like it has stepped straight out of a photograph from the turn of the 20 th century. When it is lit up at night, it takes your breath away.

At the tables, poker is the order of the day. The casino offers Mississippi stud, 3-card poker and Texas Holdem. There are also 800 slot games, while the Fanduel sportsbook has self-service betting kiosks, a wall full of television screens, and a huge video wall to show the biggest events.

Sam’s Town, Shreveport

On the opposite side of Louisiana, Sam’s Town could not be more different to the Amelia Belle. This floating leisure complex houses a hotel, health spa, sauna and live entertainment venue.

The casino offers more than 1,000 slots and 30 table games that include blackjack, roulette, baccarat, Let it Ride and Craps No More.

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A History of Riverboats in Mississippi

The mighty Mississippi river stretches from Northern Minnesota to the Gulf of Mexico. The second-longest river in the United States, the Mississippi is integral to the history of America — particularly in the state of Mississippi. Riverboats facilitated travel, commerce, and cultural exchange within Mississippi and beyond. Learn more about the impact of Mississippi riverboats in this post from Visit Mississippi .

Riverboats: The Early Days

While people have navigated the waters of the Mississippi River for centuries, steamboat technology was not viable until the early 1800s. The first steamboat to travel the Mississippi was the New Orleans, whose October 1811 maiden voyage began in Pittsburgh, PA, and ended in New Orleans after traveling along the Ohio and Mississippi Rivers.

The New Orleans stopped in Natchez in December 1811 before continuing to its final port in New Orleans. First established by French colonists and later ruled by the Spanish, Natchez was an important center of trade and cultural exchange.

The Golden Age of the Steamboat

By the 1830s, steamboats existed all along the Mississippi River and its major tributaries. The growth of Mississippi’s riverfront communities, such as Bolivar, Commerce, and Greenville, can largely be attributed to the riverboat trade. Riverboats also brought new settlers to the state, helping to speed up agricultural development in the fertile Mississippi Delta.

Propelled by steam-driven paddle wheels, steamboats could navigate the river more quickly and effectively than barges or flatboats. They carried goods such as cotton, timber, and livestock up and down the river, expanding trade throughout the growing U.S. However, steamboats could be dangerous — the boilers used to create steam could build up too much pressure and explode. Steamboats were also susceptible to hitting obstacles such as rocks or logs, which could cause them to sink. This created a growing industry for a smaller type of riverboat called a “snagboat.” Snagboats patrolled the Mississippi River looking for tree stumps, debris, or other hazards and removing them before they damaged larger steamboats.

Wealthy Mississippians could enjoy leisure travel on a showboat — a riverboat used for theater and musical performances. Showboats were ornately decorated and would announce their arrival at a port by playing music that could be heard for miles.

Riverboats During the Civil War

During the years after Mississippi’s secession from the Union, many steamboats were used to support the Confederate Army. Riverboats carried troops, provisions, and supplies along the Mississippi during the Civil War. Demand for ships was so high that both the Union and Confederate governments chartered steamboats. Riverboats also played a role in the defense of Vicksburg, an important Confederate stronghold that connected the South to the Western states.

Gaming on the River

Riverboat gambling became popular in the early 1900s due to legislation surrounding gaming. By keeping poker, roulette, and other games of chance restricted to a riverboat, business owners could evade the anti-gambling laws that were in effect on land in states along the Mississippi River. Riverboat gaming in Mississippi was legalized in 1993, but unfortunately, Hurricane Katrina destroyed many riverboat casinos. In response, Mississippi lawmakers allowed casinos to move 800 feet inland.

However, you can still find a few riverboat casinos throughout the U.S. In Mississippi, visitors can try their luck at the Ameristar Casino Hotel in Vicksburg , a riverboat-style casino and hotel located right on the water.

Mississippi Riverboats in the Present Day

According to National Geographic, by 1900, the growth of railroads across the U.S. significantly reduced the demand for transporting goods and people via steamboat. Many riverboats were retired, but a few showboats remained as a testament to this period in history.

The popularity of riverboats continues to thrive in the Magnolia State. Today, tourists can enjoy the relaxing and immersive experience of river cruising. These luxury expeditions offer a unique way to travel the Mississippi, where guests can admire the breathtaking scenery along the waterway. First-class accommodations, fine dining, and a variety of things to do can be expected on a luxury tour on the Mississippi. Companies such as American Cruise Line and Viking River Cruises offer a variety of cruises that vary in duration and cities visited, like Vicksburg and Natchez.

Plan Your Trip With Help From Visit Mississippi

If you’re planning a trip to one of our historic riverfront cities like Natchez, Vicksburg, or Greenville — or anywhere else in the Hospitality State — Visit Mississippi is here for assistance.

Plan your next trip to Mississippi using our complimentary trip planner tool that helps you map out all your must-see attractions, restaurants, and lodging options. Whether you’re here for a week or just passing through, you’ll find a wealth of information about Mississippi history and culture on the Visit Mississippi website. For more information, contact us today.

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This Week In Illinois History: Riverboat Gambling Comes To Illinois (Feb. 7, 1991)

Illinoisans have bet on horseracing since 1927, purchased Lottery tickets since 1974 and gambled for non-profit charities since 1986.

But on Feb. 7, 1990, Gov. James Thompson signed the Riverboat Gambling Act , laying odds on economic development and tourism.

With a blackjack table as a desk, the signing ceremony took place at the Peoria Boatworks. A steamboat blasted its whistle while a calliope played “ Happy Days are Here Again .”

The newly created Illinois Gaming Board granted 10 licenses, giving preferential treatment to economically depressed areas outside the Chicago area. Riverboat casinos could operate only on water and gambling was permitted only after the boats left the dock.

The first license went to Alton, which launched Illinois’ first riverboat casino, the Alton Belle, on Sept. 10, 1991. The three-deck, 600-passenger boat held 296 slot machines and 22 gambling tables.

In the first year, riverboat gambling brought in $8 million in tax revenue. The next year, it raked in $54 million, surpassing horseracing revenue.

On May 21, 1999, Gov. George Ryan signed a new Riverboat Gambling Act, which allowed gambling to continue on riverboats while they remained dockside. The new law, however, allowed an easy work-around. Rivers Casino in Des Plaines, for example, dug a shallow pit on dry land, filled it with water, and built a casino over it.

Riverboat gambling tax revenue peaked at $699 million in 2005.

In June 2019, Gov. J.B. Pritzker signed legislation allowing Illinois’ 10 riverboat casinos to move operations to dry land, effectively tapping out this brief and quirky footnote to our state history.

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Gambling in the Old West

As towns sprouted in the 19th-century American West — outside Army forts, at river crossings along wagon trails, in mining districts and at railheads — some of the first structures built were recreational facilities. Recreation for the almost totally male population inevitably meant the triple-W vices of the frontier: whiskey-drinking, whoring and wagering.

Saloons, brothels and gambling halls would appear almost overnight. In the early camps, the structure might be only a lantern-lit, dirt-floored tent, the bar simply a board stretched between two whiskey barrels, the prostitution facility just a cot in a wagon bed for the use of a single female strumpet, and the gambling outfit only a rickety table, a few chairs and a greasy, dog-eared deck of cards. As the towns grew and prospered, these primitive facilities were replaced by one-story wooden buildings with false fronts to make them appear even larger. And if the community developed into a city, saloons were housed in imposing brick buildings with ornate bars, huge back-bar mirrors and brilliant chandeliers. Some brothels became elegantly furnished parlor houses with attractive ‘boarders’ managed by madams whose names were famous throughout the West. The best-known sporting men of the West presided over and patronized gambling houses that were often the most impressive and elaborately accoutered structures of the cities.

The popularity of gambling in the West can be attributed mostly to the fact that all who left the relative safety and comfort of the East to seek fame and fortune on the frontier were, in a sense, natural-born gamblers. In the early West, gambling was considered a profession, as legitimate a calling as the clergy, the law or medicine.

During the 25-year period prior to the Civil War, gambling flourished in the towns along the Mississippi from New Orleans to St. Louis and was a staple attraction on virtually every riverboat. This golden age of gambling produced some of the most memorable practitioners of the art — legendary professionals like Charles Cora, J.J. Bryant, Jimmy Fitzgerald, John Powell, Charles Starr and Napoleon Bonaparte ‘Poley’ White.

One of the popular gambling games of the 19th century was a bluffing game that evolved into American poker. Another, vingt-et-un (twenty-one), introduced into the United States through the predominately French community of New Orleans, we now call blackjack. Still another was Mexican monte. But undoubtedly the most popular gambling game in the West was faro, which drew its name from the Egyptian pharaohs depicted on the back of the cards.

The foremost faro player on the Mississippi was Italian immigrant Charles Cora. After winning $85,000 and breaking several faro banks in New Orleans, Vicksburg and Natchez during one six-month period, he was banned from many resorts. J.J. Bryant, perhaps the best-known professional gambler on the lower Mississippi, lost thousands to Cora.

Jimmy Fitzgerald and Charles Starr were early standard-setters of the sartorial splendor that became a hallmark of the 600 to 800 professional gamblers plying their trade on the river. Their expensive black suits and boots were offset by snow-white ruffled shirts and dazzling brocaded vests. Ostentatious jewelry advertised the gambler’s prosperity. Huge rings adorned his fingers. A stickpin with a large stone, called a ‘headlight,’ sparkled on his chest. In a pocket of his ‘flowerbed’ vest was an enormous pocket watch adorned with precious jewels and attached to a heavy golden chain that draped across the gambler’s chest.

The discovery of gold in California and the resulting rush of 1849 attracted many of the paddle-wheel and Mississippi River town gamblers to San Francisco, the new El Dorado of the West. By the early 1850s Portsmouth Square, the center of the City by the Bay, was ringed by large gambling houses where the doors never closed and enormous sums changed hands over the tables.

There was the Parker House, originally built by its owner, Robert A. Parker, as a hotel, but quickly converted to a casino as the gambling craze swept San Francisco. A large room downstairs contained three tables for faro, two for monte, one for roulette and a seventh for any other game desired. Professional gamblers paid $10,000 a month for the privilege of conducting their games in this room. A smaller room behind the bar went for $3,500 a month. Jack Gamble, an appropriately named sporting man, leased the entire second floor for $60,000 and outfitted all the rooms for games of chance. It was estimated that at the peak of the California Gold Rush upward of half a million dollars was stacked on the tables of the Parker House on any given day.

Flanking the Parker House on either side were two other famous resorts, Samuel Dennison’s Exchange and the El Dorado Gambling Saloon, owned by partners James McCabe and Thomas J.A. Chambers. Other houses on Portsmouth Square were the Verandah, the Aguila de Oro, the Bella Union, the Empire, the Arcade, the Varsouvienne, the Mazourka, the Ward House, the St. Charles, the Alhambra, La Souciedad, the Fontine House and the Rendezvous. As indicated by the several French names, some of these establishments were owned and operated by gambling syndicates from France, a country long known for its love of gaming.

As mining camps sprang up and grew in the hills surrounding San Francisco, the gamblers followed. Soon elaborate temples devoted to the goddess Chance were running day and night in Sacramento, Columbia, Nevada City and other Sierra boom towns.Among the former Mississippi riverboat gamblers who gained prominence on the California scene were Cora and Bryant. In San Francisco Cora continued to enjoy remarkable success at the faro tables, but luck completely deserted him after he resolved a difficulty with U.S. Marshal William H. Richardson on November 18, 1855, by shooting him to death on a San Francisco street. Shootings and stabbings were common occurrences in the city, and had this murder been committed a few months earlier Cora might have escaped punishment on the ancient claim of self-defense. But violence had reached such proportions in the city that residents were calling for reorganization of the Vigilance Committee that had been so effective against the criminal element in 1851. In that year vigilantes had executed or banished from the city many miscreants, and now, five years later, they felt another no-nonsense cleansing was called for. They tried Cora, found him guilty and on May 22, 1856, hanged him from the roof of their headquarters building.

Bryant’s California fortunes were better. After his arrival, he had purchased the Ward House, refurbished and renamed it the Bryant House, and soon became one of the most prosperous and influential men in San Francisco. In 1850, when the first election for sheriff was held in the city, he ran for the office. Although he spent $50,000 on his campaign and bet another $10,000 that he would win, he was defeated by the popular Jack Hays, a celebrated former Texas Ranger. Bryant sold his gambling house and moved on to the outlying camps, where he was financially successful. By the time he left California in 1854, he had reportedly sent $110,000 in winnings to his wife while maintaining a lavish lifestyle for himself. He resumed his gambling operations in the South and continued to prosper, but at the end of the Civil War he found himself destitute, as his wealth was in worthless Confederate currency. He was reduced to ‘roping suckers’ into a sharper’s crooked game. One of the suckers took offense and in 1868 shot him dead.

With the 1860s came the great mining excitement of the fabled Comstock Lode in Nevada. Most of the gambling activity in the Comstock was centered in Virginia City and nearby satellite communities. As in San Francisco, gambling houses dominated the main streets of the new towns. At the height of the boom an agent of the U.S. Geological Survey, studying recreational opportunities in Virginia City, found that the town of 18,000 had a gambling house for every 150 inhabitants. The best known of the many resorts in Virginia City was the Gentry and Crittenden Gambling Saloon, which featured a no-limit faro table presided over by the famous dealer Hamilton Baker. Other houses of note were Tom Peasley’s Sazarac, named after a new cocktail introduced by Julia Bulette, the queen of the town’s red-light district; the Delta Saloon, owned and operated by Jim Orndorff and Jack Magee; and Tom Buckner’s Sawdust Corner. Other prominent gamblers of Virginia City in its heyday were James ‘Kettle Belly’ Brown, Matt Redding, Jesse Bright, Gus Botto, Billy Dormer, Tom Diamond, Miles Goodman, Joe Dixon, Ramon Montenegro, Grant Isrial and Joe Stewart.

Gold Hill and Carson City were also outstanding towns for the sporting element during the Comstock bonanza years. The undisputed top man in the game at Gold Hill was William DeWitt Clinton Gibson, who was later elected to the Nevada Senate. The Headquarters, the Magnolia and the Occidental were all first-class gambling halls in Carson, and the leading sporting men were Vic Mueller, Tump Winston, Henry Decker, Gus Lewis, Mark Gaige and Adolph Shane. Dick Brown ran two establishments — the Silver State Saloon on the divide between Virginia City and Gold Hill, and the Bank Exchange in Carson City.

One of the most important events of the late 1860s was the completion of the transcon-tinental railroad. As the Union Pacific snaked across the Great Plains to meet the Central Pacific in its historic linkup at Promon-tory, Utah Territory, on May 10, 1869, it produced a number of end-of-track towns that collectively became known as ‘Hell on Wheels.’ They were gathering points for some of the lowest dregs of the sporting world, including hundreds of tinhorn, thieving gamblers. When the railroad pushed on, most of these towns disappeared. The sporting crowd simply loaded their tents, shacks, whiskey barrels, cots, gambling equipment and other paraphernalia on flatcars and moved to the next location at the end of the line. But a few points remained as permanent communities, and today the cities of North Platte, Neb.; Julesburg, Colo.; and Cheyenne, Wyo., can trace their origins to Hell on Wheels. Most of the honky-tonk crowd who preyed on the railroad construction workers during this period were forgettable small-timers, but a few went on to prominence among the gambling men of the West. Most, like John Bull, ‘Canada Bill’ Jones, Doc Baggs and Ben Marks, claimed to follow the respected profession of gambling, but were in fact confidence operators who fleeced their victims with three-card monte, thimblerig and other crooked gambling games. When the steel rails at last spanned the country, many of these sure-thing gamblers continued to work their swindles on railroad passengers, using the rail center of Omaha as headquarters.

They joined a large contingentof other crooked gamblers who formed the lowest echelon of the profession. Gambling, with its basic get-rich-quick appeal, had always attracted a criminal element. Perhaps the most famous member of this gallery of rogues was Jefferson Randolph ‘Soapy’ Smith, who worked his crooked scheme in Colorado for many years. It was Soapy who coined the expression’sure-thing game,’ once proudly proclaiming: ‘I am no ordinary gambler. The ordinary gambler hazards his own money in an attempt to win another’s. When I stake money, it is a sure thing that I win.’

Smith got his start and his nickname from a scam he developed in Leadville, in the Colorado Rockies. He had first worked the thimblerig game, a variation on the three-card monte swindle, which simply seemed to challenge a potential victim’s quickness of eye. Manipulating three walnut shells and a pea on a board, he would induce the sucker to bet on which shell concealed the pea, when in fact it was under none of them, for he had palmed it. When that racket grew old, he devised a new scheme based on the same principle that the hand is quicker than the eye. From a pile of paper-covered soap bars he would extract a few, remove the paper and apparently wrap $20 and $50 bills around the bars before replacing the covering. He would then allow members of his audience to select any bar they wished at $5 apiece. Of course, none of them contained any bills, because he had deftly palmed them in the wrapping process.

The decade of the 1870s saw the advent of the great trail drives of Texas Longhorns to the Kansas railheads and the birth of the notorious cow towns of Abilene, Newton, Wichita, Ellsworth and Dodge City. All became great gambling centers during their early days, and some of the most celebrated names in Western history are associated with this period. James Butler ‘Wild Bill’ Hickok, Wyatt Earp and Bat Masterson are remembered today as fearless lawmen of the cattle towns, but all were professional gamblers who spent many more hours at the faro or poker tables than they ever did patrolling the streets. Joining them were other professional gamblers whose names are remembered today for their gunfighting notoriety: Doc Holliday, Ben Thompson and Luke Short.

It was no accident that many of the top-flight gunfighters of the Western frontier were members of the sporting fraternity. Tough, steel-nerved young men who had acquired gunfighting reputations either in personal difficulties or as boomtown lawmen found themselves in demand as dealers in gambling resorts. There were two reasons for this. First, gunfighters of renown attracted patronage, as miners and cowboys were quick to seize the opportunity to match wits and gambling skills with frontier celebrities across a green felt table. Second, since the open display of large piles of cash was a constant attraction for criminals of all sorts, ranging from sneak thieves to holdup men, the mere presence at the tables of famous personalities known to be adept at the art of the draw and shoot discouraged any attempt to steal.

The 1870s also saw more ore strikes and additional mining districts. New boomtowns quickly emerged, most notably Deadwood in Dakota Territory, Leadville in Colorado, and Tombstone in southern Arizona Territory. All three became gambling meccas, and their names have been associated with some of the most famous Westerners of the 19th century. Wild Bill Hickok was shot to death as he sat in a poker game in a Deadwood saloon, and the hand he held — aces and eights, the ‘Dead Man’s Hand’ — became an enduring legend of the West.

Leadville, 10,000 feet high in the mountains, blossomed almost overnight into the largest city in Colorado, and at one point its boosters attempted to wrest the state capital away from Denver. At its peak, gambling opportunities were afforded in more than 150 resorts ranging from small saloons to elaborate theaters and concert halls. Some of the better known were Tom Kemp’s Dance and Gambling Hall, which in 1879 featured vaudeville song-and-dance star Eddie Foy; the Texas House, where proprietors Bailey Youngston and ‘Con’ Featherly provided a dozen faro tables around the clock; and ‘Pop’ Wyman’s Great Saloon, in which a large sign over the bar read: ‘Don’t Shoot the Pianist — He’s Doing His Darndest.’

Most of the leading Western gamblers, including Ben Thompson, Bat Masterson, Luke Short and Doc Holliday, spent a good deal of time — and money — in Leadville. There is a story that after dropping more than $3,000 at faro one night there, the volatile Thompson in a fury turned over the table, jerked out his six-shooter and shot out all the lights, sending panic-stricken patrons scurrying for the exits. Holliday, suffering one of those streaks of bad luck and near poverty that plagued all gambling men, shot another sporting man named Billy Allen in Leadville in a dispute over a mere $5 debt (see ‘Spitting Lead in Leadville: Holliday’s Last Stand,’ in the December 2003 Wild West).

Tombstone blossomed into a major city in the Arizona desert almost overnight and attracted many prominent professional gamblers, including Masterson, Holliday, Earp and Short. The leading drinking emporium in the boomtown was the Oriental Saloon. Its owner, Mike Joyce, leased the gambling concession to a triumvirate of Western sporting men — Dick Clark, a veteran of the Colorado mining camps; Lou Rickabaugh, a San Francisco sporting man; and Bill Harris, former owner of the famous Long Branch Saloon in Dodge City. When gambling became so popular in the Oriental that it adversely affected business at the other resorts in town, a group of competitors hired Johnny Tyler, a gambler of some gunfighting notoriety, to lead a gang of toughs into the Oriental every night, start a ruckus and intimidate patrons. The Oriental owners retaliated by offering Wyatt Earp, who had acquired a gunfighting reputation of his own, a quarter interest in the business if he would handle Tyler and his cohorts. To help him in this task, Earp employed Doc Holliday and sent for Luke Short and Bat Masterson to come to Tombstone and deal in the Oriental. This squad of gunfighting luminaries was too much for Tyler, who soon left town, and the Oriental returned to its air of decorum and its profitability.

Soon Bat Masterson and Luke Short also departed Tombstone — but not before Short had killed Charlie Storms, another well-traveled professional gambler of note, in a famous gunfight. Wyatt Earp and Doc Holliday stayed on to gain immortality for their participation in the most celebrated Western showdown of all, the so-called Gunfight at the O.K. Corral. Holliday also joined Wyatt in his vendetta ride to avenge the murder of his brother Morgan and the crippling of his brother Virgil. They left Arizona as fugitives wanted for murder, but they returned to their gambling profession and were never tried.

As great cities grew in the West during the 1880s, gambling emporiums grew with them. San Francisco, where gambling had flourished since the first days of the California Gold Rush, now harbored the Barbary Coast, a sin center of worldwide notoriety. Denver, Kansas City, Omaha, Tucson, Hot Springs, Ark., and the Texas cities of Austin, San Antonio, Fort Worth and Dallas were recognized as wide-open for gambling of all sorts — from cheating three-card monte scams to high-stakes poker and faro games in elaborate casinos. It was during this period that the Gamblers’ Circuit developed, with professional followers of the goddess Chance traveling around the country, sometimes following the seasons but more often following the latest report of a mining strike or a cattleman’s convention.

In the late 1890s, gold was discovered in the Klondike region of Canada’s Yukon, and the last great rush to a new mining district was on. Of course, along with the prospectors and mining men who flocked to the Klondike were members of the sporting crowd, the same types who had been early arrivals at every boomtown in the West since the Forty-Niners first arrived in California. They opened saloons, brothels and gambling houses and did a flourishing business separating the miners from their gold dust.

Some of the most colorful professional gamblers of the American West made it to the north country. Wyatt Earp was there. He and his partner, Charlie Hoxie, ran the Dexter Saloon in Nome, which they advertised as ‘The Only Second-Class Saloon in Alaska.’ When he sold his interest to Hoxie and returned to California, Earp is said to have accumulated $85,000.

George Lewis ‘Tex’ Rickard, the former city marshal of Henrietta, Texas, joined the rush and ran gambling games, first at Circle City in Alaska and later at Dawson in Yukon Territory. He made and lost a fortune, owned and lost two gambling houses, and made another fortune. It was in the Klondike that he first began promoting prizefights, an enterprise that would lead him into worldwide celebrity as the promoter of the multimillion-dollar-gate bouts of the 1920s featuring heavyweight Jack Dempsey.

The memorable gamblers of the Klondike gold rush included ‘Square Sam’ Bonnifield, Rickard’s mentor, and Louis ‘Goldie’ Golden, who once won $72,000 and Bonnifield’s gambling establishment from Square Sam in a poker game. Goldie lost it all back later when Square Sam, supplied with fresh funds by admirers, cleaned him out. Gambler Harry Woolrich was about to board a steamer to leave the north with $60,000 in winnings when he flipped a half dollar on a faro layout and made what he said was ‘one last bet.’ Twenty-four hours later, he had lost the $60,000 and his steamer ticket. William F. ‘Swiftwater Bill’ Gates won $30,000 in a poker game in Nome but achieved national newspaper coverage for his many amorous adventures.

The crooked gamblers seemed to congregate in the north country at the port town of Skagway, where, under the leadership of Soapy Smith, they relieved new arrivals and departing miners of anything of value. In 1898 Smith was grand marshal of a Fourth of July parade in Skagway; four days later Frank Reid, a member of a citizens’ committee, shot him dead in a gunfight in which Reid also received a fatal wound.

There were still a few wide-open gambling towns after the turn of the century, most notably the boom mining camps of Nevada, particularly Goldfield, Rawhide and Tonopah. Wyatt Earp and Tex Rickard were there, as well as such colorful gambling notables as George Wingfield, Riley Grannan and ‘Diamondfield Jack’ Davis.

Wingfield started out earning $25 a day as a dealer in the Tonopah Club, gambled successfully against other houses, invested his winnings in the mines, was worth more than $2 million by age 27 and became a power in Nevada politics. Grannan broke the faro bank in one saloon and bet his $52,000 winnings on one turn of a card against title to the house. He lost. When he contracted pneumonia and died in Rawhide, Herman W. Knickerbocker, a defrocked Methodist minister, delivered a moving eulogy to the famous gambler. Diamondfield Jack got his start as a bodyguard for Wingfield. Goldfield legend has it that when he expected trouble, he became a walking arsenal, wearing three overcoats with a pistol in every pocket, a bowie knife at his belt and a sawed-off shotgun slung across his back. Other fables attached to the man. He was said to have acquired his name from a field of diamonds he owned. The rumor that he had escaped death sentences on five occasions was greatly exaggerated; he had only been condemned to hang once, for a dual murder in Idaho, and had avoided the hangman’s noose when another man confessed to the crime.

The great age of Western gambling ended with the closing of the frontier and the rise of antisaloon and woman suffrage reform movements that swept across the nation in the first decades of the 20th century. These led inevitably to constitutional amendments prohibiting the manufacture and sale of alcoholic beverages and establishing the enfranchisement of women. State after state passed legislation outlawing casino gambling. Nevada alone bucked the tide. Casino gambling returned in the latter half of the 20th century on Indian reservations and in Las Vegas, a city devoted to gambling. Its great popularity led to legalization in many areas of the country, and now anyone wishing to wager money will have little difficulty in finding a place to do it. But the colorful professional gamblers of the Western frontier are long gone and generally forgotten.

This article was written by R.K. DeArment and originally appeared in the April 2005 issue of Wild West .

For more great articles be sure to subscribe to Wild West magazine today!

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The Intriguing History of Riverboat Casinos

It’s quite interesting to know that the riverboat casinos are seldom moved away from the dock. Many states authorized this type of casino to put some limits on the gambling activities. The law didn’t allow casinos to be operational on land nor did it allow their construction on land areas. Instead, the casinos had the permission to operate on riverboats.

In recent times, riverboat casinos exist in several American states. They’re located along the Gulf Coast or along the Mississippi River. One can also find riverboat casinos along the Mississippi River’s tributaries. If you are suffering from sea-sickness, you can always play online casino. Check out Casinos Jungle , the #1 online casino platform in the US and in Canada.

Paddlewheel riverboats in the 20th century

In the early 20th century, there were paddlewheel riverboats to transport passengers and freight on the Mississippi River. The tributaries of this river also had these boats for transportation. Then came a time when the railroads became popular for transporting freight and passengers. As a result, these riverboats became increasingly useful for excursions that lasted several hours.

Instead of transporting people between riverfront towns, they were more of an escape from the crowds. They began hosting dancing and live music. Soon, they became popular places for gambling with the use of slot machines and card games.

Approval and prohibitions

In the late 20th century, the riverboat casinos got the approval of states. Most of the states had prohibitions in place for gambling activities on land. As these riverboats operated casinos in them, they had to sail away from the dock. At certain places, gambling activities were allowed only when the ship was sailing.

Indiana, Illinois, Louisiana, Missouri, and Mississippi were some of the states that allowed riverboat casinos. The state of Illinois also allowed limited number of casinos in the metropolitan area of Chicago. Most of the states that gave an approval for riverboat casinos have a frontage along the Mississippi River.

River border situation between Maryland and Virginia

During the mid-20th century, a quirk in the state border between Virginia and Maryland led to an unusual situation. The border is on the Virginia side at the low water mark and not in the middle of the river. So, the entire river falls in Maryland except for some small portions.

This led to several riverboat casinos being docked off to the Virginia shores. This happened in the 1950s, when gambling was not legal in Virginia. The visitors had to park in Virginia and walk across a pier, as the river was in Maryland.

Amending of the state constitution

In the year 1994, voters in Missouri gave their approval to amend the state constitution. This was to allow games of chance to continue on the Missouri and Mississippi rivers. Only some part of Missouri’s riverboat gambling industry were clearly on the channel of the main river by 1998. According to the ruling of the state’s supreme court, the boats had to be solely over the surface of the rivers.

These boats were also required to maintain contact with the rivers’ surface. Casinos had to be in a moat on these riverboats. They could also be in a place with water adjacent to a waterway that was navigable. This led to the riverboats being referred to as ‘boats in moats’.

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Website design for businesses: breakthrough web design, the history of riverboat gambling.

• Published on July 6, 2023
• by NIT Publisher

This article will discuss the history of riverboat gambling, beginning in the 1800s. We shall also look at some of the best riverboat casinos in the USA, including Iowa, Mississippi and Louisiana.

Of course, only some people are interested in riverboat casinos. If they are not your thing, try a top-notch online casino like FruityKing.co.nz that offers a full range of exciting casino and pokies games, all from the comfort of your home.

A Brief History of Gambling on Riverboats 

The Mississippi was the lifeblood of American industry in the 1800s, with traders taking full advantage of the connections available when using the river for transporting goods. 

This method of transportation was useful, but it was also long and tedious. The merchants and passengers would gamble for entertainment and excitement to pass the time and keep themselves entertained.

Very soon, professional gamblers were enticed to the riverboats, especially those with a reason to keep a low profile! As it was, gambling was illegal onshore, which meant the river boats were a means of gambling without breaking the law directly.  For those looking to get started with no-deposit bonuses,  bonus-bez-depozytu.net  offers a wide range of options, combining the nostalgia of riverboat gambling with modern no-deposit bonuses brings a new dimension to the gaming experience.

The Mississippi River borders more than one state, leading to the riverboats gaining popularity as entertainment destinations where people would come to dance, listen to live music and gamble. 

The latter end of the 19th century saw a decline in the popularity of riverboat casinos, mainly due to the American Civil War and the advancement of the railroad industry.

Early in the 20th century, several states withdrew their hardline stance on riverboat gambling with the first ‘legitimate’ venue, ‘ the City of Traverse’, launched on Lake Michigan. 

A Timeline of Riverboat Gambling Regulation

• In 1951, Lyndon Johnson drafted the Transportation of Gambling Devices Act. The Act effectively made it illegal to transport gambling devices across state lines (unless legal in the next state). 
• In the late 1980s, the re-emergence of riverboat gambling appeared. Several states then introduced laws allowing gambling on water vessels. Iowa was the first state to legalise riverboat gambling (1989).
• Today, you can find riverboat gambling in Iowa, Illinois, Mississippi, Louisiana, Missouri, and Indiana.
• By 2010 there were 17 riverboat casinos. By 2018 this number increased to 63 riverboat casinos, with their popularity showing no sign of slowing. 
• The state’s revenue through riverboat gambling varies from state to state, as each state has a different tax percentage on winnings.

Three Riverboat Casino Experiences

Mississippi – The Ameristar Casino promises a fully immersive 19th-century traditional paddleboat experience. The riverboat casino is a highly popular hotel with a large poker room, restaurant, and cafe. Slot machines and sports betting kiosks.

Iowa – Casino Queen Marquette provides its visitors with an exceptional experience. With a ton of floor space, this riverboat offers more than 570 slot machines and table games. Found in the heart of Marquette, Iowa, it’s a favourite venue for locals and visitors alike. 

Louisiana – The Treasure Chest Casino – is in the middle of the cultural capital of Louisiana, the famous New Orleans. Offering players a wonderful gaming experience alongside the majestic Lake Pontchartrain. 

The Treasure Chest Casino provides a wide selection of table games and slot machines and hosts events.

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History of The Pier

St. Petersburg has always had a pier. In fact, in the city’s early days, it had several of them jutting out into Tampa Bay. Here’s a look at some of the city’s rich and storied pier heritage.

1889 The Railroad Pier

The c ity’s first pier dates back to 1889, built by railroad entrepreneur Peter Demens. The Orange Belt Railway built the Railroad Pier which extended a half-mile into Tampa Bay from the foot of 1st Ave S, the terminus of the railroad . Lined with warehouses and loading docks, the 3 , 000 ft-long structure soon became popular with anglers and swimmers, prompting the construction of a bathing pavilion and toboggan slide .

1896 The Brantley Pier

Constructed by boat builder D.F.S. Brantley, the 1,500 ft Brantley Pier was built to compete with the Railroad Pier, although it never rivaled the railroad pier commercially. A horse-drawn flat car was used to shuttle goods and passengers from water’s edge to and from moored ships at the pier’s head. Its 34-room bathing pavilion proved extremely popular. The Brantley Pier started the tradition of 2nd Ave NE piers. It was replaced in 1906 by the Electric Pier.

1900 The Fountain of Youth Pier

Edwin H . Tomlinson built a 2,000 ft pier and artesian well near the east end of 3rd Ave S. In 1908 Dr. Jessie F. Conrad sampled the well water while visiting and liked it so much that he bought the pier. He promoted the well as The Fountain of Youth , and the water, which contained high amounts of lithium, was eagerly sought by visitors. The pier was torn down in 1927. The Fountain of Youth is now located at 4th Ave and 1st S t SE , connected to the ordinary tap  wat er.

1906 The Electric Pier

In the years before World War I, the Electric Pier became a major tourist attraction and a symbol of the new St. Petersburg . Known for its hundreds of electric lights and streetcar lines , the Electric Pier extended 3,000 ft into Tampa Bay. Publisher Frank Davis , who also owned the St. Petersburg Electric Light & Power Company and the St. Petersburg & Gulf Electric Railway , developed this pier which became a major tourist attraction. It was demolished in 1914.

1913 The Municipal Recreation

The first pier to accommodate automobiles , St. Petersburg’s Recreational Pier opened in December 1913. On January 1 , 1914 , Tony Jannus flew the first flight of the world ‘ s first airline from the Central Yacht Basin by the pier across the Bay to Tampa . Early amenities located along the pier approach included a hangar for the first airline and subsequent aviation use , an indoor swimming pool called the Spa, an aquarium (which later became the museum of history in 1922) , and a dance hall and banquet facility . Additional public facilities added through the years included Spa Beach , sandwich shop, tennis courts , the Solarium for nude sunbathing, and a senior citizen’s center. The October 1921 hurricane damaged the   wooden pier and it was replaced by the Million Dollar Pier in 1926 .

1926 Million Dollar Pier

Opened in 1926 , the Million Dollar Pier and its Casino was a major attraction for the city and popular gathering space. In addition to Spa Beach, a solarium , and bait houses , the Pier accommodated a two-lane roadway , a streetcar line , an observation deck , and WSUN radio station. Designed in the most popular architectural style in St. Petersburg in the 1920s , the Pier incorporated Spanish , Italian , and Moorish elements , rounding out the City’s Mediterranean Revival style heritage. The Million Doll a r Pier was demolished in 1967 due to deterioration.

1973 The Inverted Pyramid Pier

The Inverted Pyramid , with its unconventional , forward-thinking   structure was built on top of the 1926 Pier head . It was des i gned by noted architect William Harvard , Sr . Completed and opened to the public in 1973 , the iconic design continued the tradition of an over – water public gathering place and tourist attraction in do w nto w n St. Petersburg for four deca d es. Over the years , it housed three resta u rants , snack bars , miniature golf , novelty shops , an aquarium and breathtaking views of Tampa Bay. The s tructure closed in 2013 to m a ke way for a new St. Petersbur g Pier.

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An illustrated history of St. Petersburg

Although just 300 years old, St. Petersburg has a rich and exciting history, full of dramatic events and major historical figures. Founded in 1703 by Emperor Peter the Great as his "window on the West", St. Petersburg enjoys a vibrant, cosmopolitan atmosphere and some of the most beautiful architecture in Europe. For those interested in culture and history, St. Petersburg is the perfect holiday destination.

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