1600 The first casino is invented in Italy. 1800 Gambling houses became more common in Europe and appeared in the US. 1850 The first known slot machine was invented around 1850. 1930 Gambling became legalized in certain states, creating gambling hubs like Las Vegas, NV and Atlantic City, NJ.

The first slot machines in the modern sense were invented by Bavarian-born American inventor Charles August Fey, at the time a mechanic in San Francisco, who built his first coin-operated gambling machine in 1894.