by Jacquie Rogers
Gambling in the Old West was not considered a vice as it is today. People who immigrated risked life and limb, not to mention their life savings, on hitting it rich, whether in land or gold, or both, so it's only reasonable to see why gambling was ubiquitous. Bat Masterson wrote: "Gambling was a respected profession, almost equal in rank to Medicine and a lot higher than Dentistry and Undertaking."
I'm not a gambler (although there's a casino less than a mile from my house), but my protagonist in Sleight of Heart (High-Stakes Heroes), Burke O'Shaunessey, is a riverboat gambler so I had to delve into the lives and attitudes of the gamblers who left their marks on history.
Westerners bet on anything that moved — how fast it could go and how high it could jump. They bet on foot races, boxing matches, flea-jumping contests, frog-jumping contests, bear and bull matches, dog fights, cock fights, as well as cow-boy tournament events such as saddlebronc riding.
But most of all, westerners like to play the ponies: “Gradually, as wealthy men made a hobby or a sideline of breeding horses, Western races became more carefully orchestrated, the crowds grew and betting flourished. Indeed, gambling and a day at the races became a virtually synonymous. And when Westerners got around to staging formal stakes races the prizes were sometimes much richer than those back East. In 1873 what was billed as “The richest race in the world” was run at Ocean View Park in San Francisco. The winner’s purse was $20,000 paid in gold. In the same year New York’s famous Belmont was worth only $5,200 and Maryland’s Preakness a mere $1,800.” [Gamblers of the Old West, p.200]
While horse racing was wildly popular, a close second was boxing. This sport wasn’t exactly the refined version we have today. Boxers wore no gloves and a round lasted until one of them knocked the other down — with no limit to the number of rounds. As long as both fighters could throw a punch, the match was active. The winner took the purse which could be as much as $10,000.
And of course they played the card and dice games. Faro was by far the most popular gambling game. Professional gamblers in the Old West, the really good ones, were called “thoroughbred gamblers.” I’m listing several thoroughbreds and sources where you can get more information, as well as a few famous gamblers, not necessarily thoroughbreds, but definitely well-known.
George Devol
Mississippi riverboat gambler, born in 1829, who worked the river for 40+ years and made a fortune on 3-card monte, poker, and keno. He wrote a fabulous book, Forty Years a Gambler on the Mississippi, that I used when I researched Sleight of Heart. I've never found anything even close to this book's helpfulness as far as explaining how gambling and conning works. Mr. Devol was probably charming, rough, and genius (in his way). He came from a good family who had no idea what to do with such a rambunctious boy, and he won and lost many fortunes over his lifetime.
Elanora Dumont (Madam Mustache)
Quoted from American Gambler Online (which no longer contains history):
“In the 1850s Elanora Dumont was a sexy young dealer who attracted love-starved players that gladly lost their gold to this expert player. As she grew in popularity so did her earning. Eventually she owned her own casino, "Dumont Palace" which also prospered, because she enjoyed a reputation for fairness and free food. The mustache appeared suddenly well after she'd made her money. Following a busted romance and a worse marriage which left her broke and alone, she poisoned herself 1879.”
Jefferson Randolph “Soapy” Smith II
A very colorful character, indeed! Soapy is more in the spirit of con men than traditional gamblers, but his talents spanned both and he certainly can’t be overlooked. His family came to Texas from Georgia and 
early on, young Jeff showed quite an ability for organization, a skill that served him well in building his bunco empire.
Originally running a shell game, he graduated to the soap scheme where he wrapped 5-cent bars of soap with in plain paper, some wrapping covered $20, or $100-dollar bills, and he sold the bars for $5 a piece. Of course, the only people who actually “won” were on Soapy’s payroll.
early on, young Jeff showed quite an ability for organization, a skill that served him well in building his bunco empire.Originally running a shell game, he graduated to the soap scheme where he wrapped 5-cent bars of soap with in plain paper, some wrapping covered $20, or $100-dollar bills, and he sold the bars for $5 a piece. Of course, the only people who actually “won” were on Soapy’s payroll.
Always ready to make a buck, Soapy did everything from fixing elections (once with Bat Masterson) to the more standard job owning and operating a poker hall.
His great-grandson, Jeff Smith, wrote Soapy's definitive biography: Alias Soapy Smith: The Life and Death of a Scoundrel. And there's lots of great information about him at the Alias Soapy Smith website.
Wyatt Earp
Everything has been written about him, but I’m including him because he was a renowned gambler who owned gaming halls and saloons throughout the West. Here’s an interesting site about Earp’s life: The Wyatt Earp History Page.
Poker Alice (Ivers)
"Praise the Lord and place your bets. I'll take your money with no regrets." Poker Alice was an amazing woman. Outstanding mathematical ability stood her well throughout the years while she made her way quite nicely through a man’s world. My heroine in Sleight of Heart, Alexandra Campbell, is based on her — and on my aunt Grace, who was so good at counting cards that she was unwelcome in Reno casinos.
There’s a good article about Poker Alice at Legends of America, and another article on Alice's Sturgis, SD, house.
We've all heard of aces and eights, the dead man's hand, of Wild Bill Hickok, shot in a Deadwood saloon by Jack McCall. James Butler Hickok fancied himself a gambler, but lost more than he won. Still, when we think of Old West gamblers, his name always comes to mind. Here's a good article on the life of Hickok at Kansas Heritage.
William Barclay "Bat" Masterson (1856-1921)
Bat Masterson made his living as a sports writer for 38 years, but was best known as a lawman and a gambler. He played poker and faro, of course, but he also loved base-ball and was especially fond of boxing. You can learn more about Bat Masterson on the Ford County Historical Society page.
And there you have a handful of gamblers — not all of them the thoroughbred variety, but well known, nevertheless.
Interesting Books
Forty Years a Gambler on the Mississippi, George H. Devol, originally published in 1887 by Devol & Haines, Cincinnati. Republished by Applewood Books, 18 North Road, Bedford, MA, 01730. ISBN 1-55709-110-2. This book is a series of vignettes by Mr. Devol recounting various adventures he had as a Mississippi riverboat gambler.
Gamblers of the Old West, from the Editors of Time-Life Books. ISBN 0-7835-4903-2. This is a terrific book with many fine illustrations the aid in the understanding of gambling in the 19th century. Please bear in mind that the terminology is often modern.
Games You Can’t Lose: A Guide for Sucker$, Harry Anderson and Turk Pipkin, Burford Books, 1989, 2001. ISBN 1-58080-086-6. While certainly not a historical reference, this book is an interesting read for anyone who’s writing a con artist character.
Card Control: Practical Methods and Forty Original Card Experiments, Arthur H. Buckley, Dover Publications, Inc., 1993 (first published in 1946), ISBN 0-486-27757-7. Need to deal from the bottom or stack the deck? This book shows you how. Not that I got anything but gales of laughter from my husband and friends when I tried cheating... (Remember the manual dexterity requirement?)
The Pocket Guide to Dice and Dice Games, Dr. Keith Souter
Interesting Sites:
Gambling in the United States
Western slang and phrases
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