Roulette History

"Even-Odd"

One such similar game was called E-O for Even-Odd. It appeared in Bath, England, beginning in about 1739. E-O players bet on one of two colors. One color represented the even numbers and the other represented odd numbers. This game was short-lived and disappeared in 1820 with the introduction of the French roulette. Refugees from the French Revolution brought roulette with them as the fled to England. Roulette was preferred over E-O because of the greater variety of bets it offered.

In 1765, roulette in its present form was introduced into Paris through the efforts of a police official, Gabriel de Sartine.  Roulette's acceptance was immediate, and its popularity continues to this day. Early-nineteenth-century roulette had both a single and double zero, very much like the wheels used in Las Vegas today. When the ball dropped into the red single 0, all bets on red were considered bars, and no money was won or lost. Conversely, when the ball landed in the black 00 pocket, all bets on black were barred.

"Monte Carlo Is Born"

In 1856, a joint stock company petitioned Prince Charles III, the ruler of Monaco, for permission to build a casino. He liked the idea of the potential tax revenues but doubted that the venture would succeed. He finally granted his permission for the construction of the casino, bringing gambling to Monte Carlo.

"La Place Du Casino In Monte Carlo"

Francois Blanc was in Germany when he first heard of the Monte Carlo project. He was intrigued as gambling was being outlawed in much of the rest of Europe. In 1863, he signed a 50-year franchise contract and built the luxurious Place du Casino. His aim was to build it in a way that would attract the richest members of society. He also persuaded French authorities to build a new highway to Monaco, and to extend the railway from Nice. These innovations opened Monte-Carlo to the world.

Monaco grew into an extravagantly beautiful playground for the world's wealthy and international sportsmen alike. Roulette was very popular there and became a gentleman's game. Roulette sailed across the Atlantic to America in the early 1800s, first appearing in the French city of New Orleans. This version of the game used both the single and double zeros. The game quickly became just as popular in New Orleans as it had been in Europe.

"The 3rd Zero :-)"

The New Orleans Casino was so popular, that at the end even the gaming operators became greedy. Lacking the competition of the Blanc brothers, New Orleans operators added rather than subtracted a zero. This 3rd zero position featured a picture of an American eagle and tripled the house percentage over the single-zero game. The operators also increased the wheel speed to three times the pace of the leisurely 36 spins per hour of the game played in the European casinos. The third zero put players at too much of a disadvantage. The popularity of the game dwindled. The third zero was eventually dropped and roulette was revived.

One of the places which was revived was in the gambling houses that sprang up in the mining camps of California during the Gold Rush. Roulette is a popular game yet today in American casinos. In Europe the climate for Roulette was somewhat different than in America. In Europe it was a game played by the wealthy and the elite. Gambling resorts sprang up wherever gaming was legal and the privileged could play wherever they wanted. Competition among the casinos was strong. Consequently, the game was changed in Europe to increase the player's odds and attract more players. The 00, still found on American wheels, was eliminated. This cut the casino margin by half. A further enticement was the introduction of the 'surrender' or 'en prison' rule that cut the casino margin in half once again.

"The Double Zero Stays Alive In America"

In the Old West, roulette was the only game of its kind in the gambling houses. Gaming houses were often tents that moved from one mining strike to the next. Similar gaming houses sprang up in the 'end of the line' railroad towns as the iron rails stretched across the vast distances of the American west. Entertainment opportunities for the miners and the railroad workers in those isolated camps were few. There was little competition for the casinos and the operators didn't face the same competitive situation as their European counterparts. There was no need to reduce the house percentage. The 00 remains a part of the American game even to this day.

"American vs. European Roulette"

The difference is in the numbers. The European game has 37 numbers and pays up to 35:1. The American game has 38 numbers and pays up to 35:1. By dropping the 38^th number, the European game reduces the percentage inherent to the house, or casino, by half. In the European game, the inherent house percentage is 2.7%, while in the American game, with 38 numbers; the inherent house percentage is 5.26%.