The history of the Lotto is very long and in fact nobody is quite sure when the lottery was first developed. However, one thing is for sure and that is that the lottery was first implemented thousands of years ago yet nobody knows for sure who the first person was who had the idea for a lottery. Although, Moses from the Bible implemented a lottery when was giving out land to individuals west of the Jordan River. If Moses was using a lottery then it is obvious the beginnings behind the lottery are very old indeed. As time went on the idea of a lottery began changing a bit.



In 100 BC the Chinese used a lottery to raise money for the protection of the country as well as to build the Great Wall. Lotteries may have been used for some period of time in this area afterwards as well, but in the mid 1400s in Europe a lottery or raffle was held for paintings. Not long afterwards Belgium began using lotteries to raise money for canals, buildings, and the like. By the 1500s lotteries were being held in Italy, and many believe the name of lottery was developed from the Italian word "lotto" that simply means fate. In this same time period Italy began hosting lotteries to win cash.

The 1700s saw lotteries in the American colonies and these were used to raise money for all types of activities like construction, financing the war effort, as well as other things. The Netherlands also developed a lottery in this period of time that still exists today.

Lotteries were a source of financing for many American churches, universities, and other public buildings because there were few banks established that could offer financing of this magnitude. Many famous universities like Harvard and Columbia were constructed from lottery proceeds.

Then, the 1800s saw a big change with states banning lotteries and Canada even trying to prohibit lotteries as well. This stayed in existence for sometime and then New Hampshire decided to initiate a form of lottery called a sweepstakes that was associated with horse racing in order to avoid the ban against lotteries.

Soon, the 1970s became a time for lotteries with many states like New York and New Hampshire starting them. Hundreds of millions of dollars worth of tickets were sold and the lotteries were very popular. By 1976 more than one billion dollars of lottery tickets were sold and the Lotto was here to stay.

By 1999, 37 states had lotteries and lotteries were legal in all Canadian provinces. In addition, more than 60 countries had lotteries as well.

Today, lotteries are still incredibly popular worldwide and exist on all continents. There are many popular lotto games that allow for large sums of money for the lucky winners.