Of many ways, The game epitomizes the raw-bones tenacity of the American spirit that fueled the Western movement from the Mississippi River in the 19th century. Life on the frontier was harsh, dangerous, and full of risk—pioneers literally gambled with their lives every day. Whether to survive in the Wild West or to win at poker, a man had to be skilled at what he did and count on lady luck smiling on him. He had to keep a close eye on his opponents and sometimes trick his way out of a situation. The results of his actions could be very profitable or he could lose everything, sometimes even his life. Draw poker then was a natural choice for men from the American West who were used to risking everything.

The game was the result of an evolutionary process that began when poker took shape in the United States in the early 19th century. When and where it was first played is the subject of ongoing debate among historians, as is the game’s origins. Various postulations attribute the game’s lineage to a French game called “poque” or possibly a German game known as “pochspiel”. British historians claim that the game was a direct descendant of the English card game “brag”. Other researchers claim that poker evolved from a sixteenth-century Persian card game called “as nas” that was played with a deck of twenty-five cards containing five suites and had rules similar to five-card poker. Since exact documentation of poker’s early history is impossible, determining its start will likely remain a mystery.

Poker is believed to have started in the United States sometime in the early 19th century, possibly in the saloons of New Orleans. From there it spread up the Mississippi and Ohio rivers through commercial steamboat traffic. Then, as wagon trains and railroads pushed the frontier west, poker continued to gain popularity among early adventurers. An English actor, Joseph Crowell, recorded seeing poker played on riverboats in his 1829 diary and later in his 1844 book, Thirty years passed between the players of England and America. A reformed player by the name of Jonathan H. Green wrote about early poker in his book, Exhibition of the arts and miseries of the game which was published in 1843. Both men described an early version of poker played with a deck of twenty cards (AKQJ-10). Each of the four players was dealt five cards and bets were placed on these five original cards with no draws or discards. When the betting ended, the owner of the best hand won the pot, in the order of one pair, two pair, treble, full house (one pair and one treble), and four of a kind. Due to the limits of a twenty card deck, there was only one round of betting before the winning hand was declared and this made bluffing a much more difficult maneuver.

As the game evolved it moved to a thirty two card deck and eventually to the standard fifty two card “French deck”. Sometime in the mid-1830s, straights and flushes were introduced as winning hands. A few years later draw poker was born and began to make the rounds in card rooms in the west. The first mention of draw poker appeared in the American edition of Bohn’s New Games Manual in 1850. In that same year, jokers were introduced to the game of poker.

With these improvements, draw poker and another version called stud poker became the card games of choice among soldiers on both sides of the Civil War. Originally called “stallion horse” poker, the game was played around campfires between battles and was a close rival to draw poker in popularity. Both versions are conducive to bluffing, but in stud poker, drawing or discarding is not allowed. Rather, some of the cards are dealt face down and some face up to the player so that everyone at the table knows some of the cards each player has. Betting occurs after each new face-up card is dealt and after the last face-down card is dealt. The first mention of stud poker appeared in the American Hoyle of 1864.

In draw poker, all the cards are dealt face down to the players and once all the cards have been dealt, there is a round of betting. Players can then discard any number of cards and receive the same number of cards from the dealer. When all players have completed their hands, there is another round of betting before the winner is declared. Later, in 1870, jackpot poker was introduced in an attempt to prevent players with bad hands from being dragged into a pot that was unwinnable. In this version, players were required to have jacks or higher to open betting. If a player did not have the minimum to play, he had to fold and lose his ante.

The first recorded set of rules for playing draw poker arose when Robert C. Scheneck, United States Ambassador to Great Britain, introduced the game to members of Queen Victoria’s court at a party in 1872. Fascinated with the new game, the royals asked Scheneck to write down the rules of the game so they could play it after they returned to the United States. He complied and his handwritten rules of the game were then printed by the queen’s staff for future parties. Later, without the permission of him or the queen’s court, his rule set was published as a small booklet and sold to the masses. With right, A Flowery Path to Riches: The Game of Draw Poker as Taught to the English Aristocracy, the booklet was a great success with the British, who often referred to the game as “Scheneck poker”. Scheneck, who had served as a general under President Lincoln, was embarrassed by the public publication of his rules that he had been assured would be used privately by the queen’s court.

John W. Keller, an American, included Scheneck’s rules for draw poker in his own book, The draw poker game, published in 1887. In addition, he used a portion of a letter written by Scheneck to a political friend, Thomas L. Young; to describe how the ambassador had unexpectedly become part of the publication of the first set of rules for the game.

Keller’s book provided a more detailed description of the game’s rules and variations, as well as a section on progressive poker, which he described as “The latest development in draw poker…and no doubt owes its origin to the popularity of progressive euchre.” Contrary to Keller’s comments, progressive poker never caught the attention of American players and his game quickly disappeared from the gaming scene.

Throughout the book, Keller refers to a celebrated mathematician, “Dr. Pole,” who provided probability and odds for poker hands. At the end of the book, she summarizes Pole’s calculations in a series of probability tables, which have stood the test of time. According to Dr. Poe’s figures, there are a staggering 2,598,960 possible hands in draw poker.

Since Keller’s book was published in 1887, there have been a plethora of books in print on the subject of draw poker, but few have been as clear and concise on the rules and strategy of the game. His sage advice to “Study your opponents carefully, watch the game closely, be patient in adversity and calm in prosperity” seems to be in keeping with the old player adage to know “when to hold them and when to fold them.”

Poker timeline:

1839 – English comic actor Joseph Crowell wrote about a game of poker being played on the steamer Helen M, Gregor, bound for New Orleans. He described a game called poker played by four players using 20 cards (A, K, Q, J, 10) with a single round of betting: the highest hand wins. In his book Thirty years passed between the players of England and America (1844), Crowell said that the game had been invented by the American politician Henry Clay. The game was based on the British game Brag.

1834 – Jonathan H. Green, a professional gambler turned reformer, wrote about the “cheating game” called poker played on Mississippi River boats in his book titled, Exhibition of the Arts and Miseries of the Game.

1836 – J. Hildreth wrote about poker in his book, Rocky Mountain Dragon Campaigns.

1837 – Poker used a deck of 52 cards. Added stairs and colors.

1845 – Poker is mentioned for the first time in an American edition of Hoyle’s Games. (The Gold Standard for Card Game Rules) by Henry F. Anners.

1850 – First mention of draw poker in the American edition of New Bohn Games Manual.

1850 – Jokers are introduced to poker.

1861-1866 – During the Civil War, soldiers and others made stud and draw poker the most popular form of the game.

1864 – First mention of stud or “stud-horse” poker in the American Hoyle of 1864.

1872: Robert C. Scheneck, the American minister to Great Britain, introduced the game of poker to members of Queen Victoria’s court at a royal party. He was asked to write the rules of the game and eventually this was turned into a small booklet. The pamphlet was published without his permission and called, A Flowery Road to Riches: The Game of Draw Poker as Taught to the English Aristocracy. Scheneck had been a general in the army under President Lincoln.

1870 – Jackpot poker (jacks or better to open) is introduced to prevent players with a bad hand from being dragged into an unwinnable pot.

1875 – The joker (a European invention) was introduced to the game as a joker.