I had forgotten all about that history (was too young to see it first hand) and it has been a while since I drove down 301 past the wigwam.
I was thinking it was more recent as I had seen what looked like slot machines in Chesapeake Beach in the past decade. I hadn’t actually used one of them so for all I know they may actually be electronic bingo machines or something similar.
It’s a freak of the law that allows the Rod and reel Restaurant to have those machines.
The law allows pull tabs in some places, and those machines use pull tabs,but work like slot machines. They distribute the tabs which you must take to the bartender-cashier and turn in for the winnings.They have had them there for a while now,but here comes the kicker.
Some restaurants in St. Marys County got wind of the way it was done, and they started doing it in St. Mary’s County, they got away with it for a while because half of the profits went to charity. It kept somw schools open and gave the Fire departments and Lions club and some other charities a nice income.
St. Mary’;s restaurants got away with it for about 6 months, and then the State woke up and saw their LOtto profits slacking. Slacking by about $11,000 dollars a day.
athey jumped right in and broke it up, then they passed this farce slots bill that nowsfands.which by the way there are no slot outlets in Sty. Mary’s County. Right now they are in Anne Arundel Mall ,in Ocean City, and a new one is expected to open at the National Harbor.
Now here comes another kicker. The machines at Chesapeake Beach are still there, and it is rumored that the owners are personal friends of Mike Miller Senate President of the Maryland Legislature.
So if you saw machines resembling slots at Chesapeake Beach you are right.
Now all of these machines are electronic,as are the ones in Vegas and Atlantic City, and at Dover. Now Personal;ly I do not trust electronic machines.
The old mechanical machines were set to pay out 80-20. In other words they kept 20% for the house. But they were set and sooner or later they paid off. With Electronic machines I just don’t trust that computer to pay me off.
I don’t play any slots very often,but none of the modern slots arouns in Dover or Atlantic city pay of with cash any more, they give you a receipt you take to the Cashier, I always liked the sound of my hit being put in the tray. Many machines today don’t even have the one arm that gave the s;lots their nickname.