Interesting Trivia About The World’s First Slot Machine

The World’s First Slot Machine

The world today is completely different to how it was a century ago; we have computers, aeroplanes, sports cars, and the Internet. Most of what we have and use today was created and developed over the last few countries, and very little of what was invented a hundred years ago remains in the same form.

This doesn’t apply to everything, however, and for the most part, the simple slot machine, whether it’s the physical machine or the digital counterpart has retained much of the same mechanics that the very first one used a century in the past.

Slots – Then And Now

Slots are a huge part of the entertainment and gambling industry in the modern world, and account for more than 60% of the visitors at any given casino.

Thousands upon thousands of slot machines exist all over the world, and their venture into the online world has only made them that much more popular.

Every single one of these machines can be traced back to a single slot that was invented at the end of the 1800s by a man named Charles Fey.

And while they may be different in a lot of ways, as these machines of the past didn’t offer mini games or a casino slots bonus, they still have a lot of the charm that Fey’s invention had all those years ago.

How The First Slot Began

It all started with Charles Fey, who was a businessman who had moved to the United States earlier in his life. He dabbled in jobs until he found work at Electric Works. They began experimenting with different types of games, until Fey eventually decided to design a machine that allowed players a chance at winning prizes.

It was simple in many ways, but the designed was revolutionary at the time, and it wasn’t long before people starting taking notice.

How The Machine Worked

Fey’s slot was made up of three slots and used symbols consisting of diamonds, hearts, and spades, the inspiration of these taken from playing cards. Alongside these were horseshoes and the Liberty Bell, which were seen as symbols of good luck at the time.

At first, he was not able to get a patent on his invention due to the laws of the country during the period, but he amended this by renting the machine out to various places. This worked until new government rules came into place that allowed for the legal but regulated usage of gambling machines.

The Slot Machine Became More Popular By The Day

With his machine patented, Fey opened up his first factory to allow mass production of the slot, and while it still took a while to take off, by the time Fey had reached the age of 82, his slot machine had changed the world as we know it.

Slot machines became the staple of all casinos from the 1950s onward, and featured prominently in the casinos of Las Vegas. His legacy continues to live on, and as old as the slot is, it still looks to have a bright and promising future.