The History of Poker Chips
Posted in Poker on 06/03/2010 10:21 am by Shelby
Poker chips have been made from a huge range of materials in an almost endless selection of styles since the advent of wagering and the need to track winnings. The most commonly used components used at present in the manufacture of new poker chips are plastic, clay, and acrylics. Clay chips, the oldest of the group, have been manufactured in the US since the late 19th century.
Back in the 19th century, poker enthusiasts appear to be using any small valuable item you can imagine. Early poker enthusiasts sometimes employed rough gold pieces as well as chips – mainly made of wood and clay. By the 1900s, poker chip features began to play a greater prominence, and the smooth edges of older chips gave way to chips with engraved slits to keep them neatly piled up with each other.
There is little or no doubt that poker has expanded steadily in universal appeal ever since its origin in the 1800s. With the explosive increase of net gaming and unique TV shows, public appeal in poker has accelerated more rapidly than ever before. Most people are first introduced to poker by TV showssuch as "Celebrity Poker" or the Travel Channel’s "World Poker Tour," and most will play their 1st hands on the net. Regardless of net poker’s growth, nothing competes with the feeling of shuffling heavy clay poker chips in your hand, tossing chips into the middle of a poker table, or stacking high pilesstacks of chips after displaying a winning hand.