The History of Bingo

Bingo was able to reach American shores during the depression. But the history of Bingo didn't start from that point in time; in fact Bingo began centuries earlier. Here's a short history of Bingo and how it became one of the biggest fund raising events anywhere.

Though the name "Bingo" isn't even Italian to begin with, Bingo was invented by Italians. Back then, Bingo was called "Lo Giuoco del Lotto D' Italia" in Italy. This game was instituted as the country's national lottery in 1530 and was played every week.

In the year 1770, Bingo came to France and was renamed as "Le Lotto". But during this era, only wealthy aristocrats were allowed to play Bingo in France.

Bingo came to Germany in 1880. Then, a new version of Bingo was developed by the Germans. The German version of the game was adapted to teach German kids to learn history, spelling, and math.

It was the time of the depression when Bingo finally hit United States shores. Bingo started in the US as a game played in carnivals. They didn't have the equipment we have today when playing Bingo. Bingo was called Beano back in the 1920's.

In fact, the people playing Bingo would cover called numbers on their cards with beans and draw numbers from a cigar box or whatever safe containers available at the time. Bingo (still known then as Beano) was first played in the United States in Atlanta, Georgia.

Edwin S. Lowe, a toy salesman, observed the sheer thrill of the game as players in a carnival anticipated the next number to be called. Lowe saw the heat of the game first hand and was impressed that the game ended at three in the morning and pitchman (the guy pulling the numbers) had to chase away adamant players.

Lowe then developed Bingo from the game Beano that he observed from the carnival. Lowe test played Bingo among his friends, which had the same result as the carnival game. The name of the game was changed to Bingo, an idea Lowe got from a mispronunciation of Beano when one player was over excited at winning the game.

Bingo remained popular even during both world wars. Troops and army servicemen played a version of Bingo called Housey-Housey. The game still continues to be a hit today as a major tool for charity fund raising, though there have been (and still remains) debates over the issue of Bingo being gambling.

Bingo remains as an institution for charity work, or perhaps just a great social event to bring people closer together.