08.25
The History of Poker Chips
Gaming chips have been manufactured from a wide range of materials in an almost endless variety of variations since the creation of wagering and the requirement to track winnings. The most familiar materials used at this time in the manufacture of current poker chips are plastic, clay composite, and acrylics. Clay chips, the oldest of the bunch, have been made in America since the late 19th century.
Back in the 19th century, poker players seemed to use any small valuable item imaginable. Early poker enthusiasts at times employed rough gold pieces along with chips – primarily manufactured of wood and clay. By the 1900s, poker chip designs began to play a bigger prominence, and the smooth sides of older chips gave way to chips with ridges to keep them neatly arranged together.
There is little doubt that poker has expanded steadily in popularity since its origin in the 1800s. With the explosive increase of net gaming and specialty television shows, community appeal in poker has accelerated faster than ever before. Most folks are initially introduced to poker by TV showslike "Celebrity Poker" or the Travel Channel’s "World Poker Tour," and most will play their first hands online. Despite net poker’s rise, nothing competes with the feeling of shuffling weighty poker chips in your hand, tossing chips into the center of a casino table, or stacking tall pilesstacks of chips after displaying a victorious hand.