Nowadays, it’s easier than ever to enter the Lottery and be in with the chance of winning big. Thanks to sites like Play Alberta, you no longer need to even leave the house to enter your chosen game. The Lottery comes in many forms, depending where in the world you choose to play, however the basic concept remains the same.
But, where did the idea of this game originate from? Read on as we take a step back in time to where the Lottery began.
The Beginning
Historians believe that the Lottery, in its most primitive form, originated in Ancient China in around 200 BC. At this point, the game was known as “White Pigeon Game” and was closer to a form of Keno. This name came from the simple fact that pigeons were used to deliver the results of each draw to villages around the country. In the earlier years, Lotteries were primarily used to raise funds for the state, which was also the case when China developed their version of the game. In fact, playing the Lottery actually went on to help fund the building of the Great Wall of China!
Evidence of the Lottery can also be found in Ancient Rome, with the draws taking place over luxurious dinners, with Augustus Caesar pioneering the game. Citizens would be able to purchase tickets to be entered into the draw, with the prizes often being whatever the Roman army has brought home from their travels.
Coming to America
Surprisingly, the Lottery didn’t hit America until the mid-1600s, after the game finally established itself across Europe. The first form of American Lottery could be found in New York, which was then known as New Amsterdam. In this version, players would be asked to predict how many bibles were bought across the city over a specific period of time. The basic concept of the game was in place, but still a far cry from what we know as the Lottery today! Despite America having a somewhat strained view of the gambling, the game’s development was later supported by George Washington and Thomas Jefferson, alongside revered colleges such as Harvard and Yale, who helped lift the Lottery to where it is today.
Introduction to Canada
Over the years, the Canadian government, much like America, has struggled with their views of gambling. In 1892, the Canadian Criminal Code put a ban on all kinds of gambling, in an attempt to regulate and resolve vigilante behaviour. However, as the rest of the world began to see value in the many forms of casino gaming – namely the Lottery – the code was amended in 1969, allowing lotteries to run provincially and as a way to fund special projects.
A year later, Quebec jumped onto the trend and created Loto-Quebec, the first Canadian corporation that dealt primarily with lotto administrations. From here, other provinces followed suit, as well as a national Lottery being formed in 1974 – that you can still enter today!
Fundraising
As well as helping to fund the building of the Great Wall of China, Rome’s Caesar also used the profits from the Lottery to maintain the condition of the city. What’s more, the Lottery, and online gaming in general, has remained as a great way to raise funds to support local areas.
As is the case in the majority of Canada, as we briefly touched on earlier, all money that is raised from playing online at the aforementioned Play Alberta is fed directly back into Alberta’s General Revenue Fund in order to support local programmes and services that the general public have come to rely on in their day-to-day lives. It really is a win-win game.
The Lottery has remained a popular game throughout Canada, despite making its debut so many years ago. Easy to play and simple to understand; why do you love to play Lotto?