Historical Lottery Tickets Collectors Are On The Lookout For
There’s no doubt that Americans love lotteries. There is a long history of lottery in the United States, which is hardly surprising considering the lure of easy money. We all wish we were the blue collar worker who hit it big and is now retiring in Hawaii. For some people, even a losing lottery ticket can bring excitement Đ because for some collectors of historic artifacts, lottery tickets are valuable collectibles.
Take the earliest lottery held in the United States Đ the Massachusetts Government Lottery begun in 1744. Tickets sold for this lottery are prized because they are a very early piece of Americana, and are signed by Samuel Watts and other directors of the lottery.
Each ticket cost thirty shillings at the time of sale. Twenty-five thousand tickets were sold. The odds of winning were quite good Đ around 22% — and the first drawing was held in Faneuil Hall. It was such a resounding success that other colonies decided to hold their own lotteries.
Benjamin Franklin organized one lottery, in order to raise money to bolster the military arsenal. These tickets are avidly sought by collectors, because of their association with one of the founding fathers.
You can even find tickets to the lottery held to fund the Revolutionary War. In November 1776, the Continental Congress authorized the establishment of the United States Lottery for this purpose. Early American history collectors prize these tickets, for obvious reasons.
Collectors are perhaps even more excited by the prospect of finding a ticket to the Mountain Road Lottery of 1768. This lottery was managed by George Washington, and his autograph is on each ticket.
In a recent auction, lottery tickets with Washington’s signature sold for more than $15,000 each. If you want a piece of history to display, you can get an authentic reprint for a fraction of this price, and they are still quite striking on display.
For collectors, the thrill of finding historic lottery tickets is significant. Maybe not as much of a thrill as winning millions, but it’s still quite a joy to find that ticket you’ve been searching for.
Read more of this author’s articles regarding topics including kitten for adoption and caring for kittens.
July 1, 2010
|
Posted by Melissa Smith
Categories:
Tags: