gambling in alberta - Research Services - University of Lethbridge

Cheating at gambling (Part XXVIII Fraud, s.395)
Encouraging/facilitating the fighting of animals or the establishment of a cockpit (Part XXXVII
Mischief, s.512-513)
1892 Criminal Code of Canada
1894 Cochrane Racing Association formed and a horse race track built. Horse racing began in the
Cochrane area in the 1880s and continued until 1931 (horse racing began to be reinstated in most
U.S. states by this time).
1900 -
1910
The same general pattern of gambling that existed in the 1800s continued in the early 1900s
(i.e., gambling on card games; dice games; lotteries/raffles; and betting on horse racing, cock
fights, and prize fights, with most of the gambling being done by males).
Horse racing particularly flourished, as antigambling coalitions closed most horse race tracks
in the U.S. in this period, resulting in some shift of operations to Alberta.
Slot machines start appearing in Alberta bars and pool rooms. Their legality is unclear with
some courts contending that their use constituted operating a common gaming house, as
the owner of the slot machine gains financially from their presence. Other legal opinions
consider them to be illegal lottery contrivances.
Alberta population in 1901 is estimated to be 73,022.
1900 Criminal Code amended to permit raffles that are conducted for charitable or religious purposes.
Criminal Code amended to no longer allow the distribution of art by raffles as cash value was
often substituted in place of art, and there were concerns that companies were conducting art
raffles primarily for financial gain. The exceptions to this repeal were the Art unions of London,
Great Britain, and Ireland.
1905 Alberta becomes a province of Canada.
Millarville Race Club forms (now Millarville Racing & Agriculture Society) and first race held June
23.
1906 New sections 985 & 986 added to Criminal Code indicating that if any instruments or contrivance of
unlawful gaming or mechanisms to conceal unlawful gaming are found on a premise it is assumed that
the premise is a common gaming house.
1906 Revised Criminal Code
1910s Greater restrictions on gambling are enacted in the later part of the decade, partly to require
more focus on the war effort (WWI). Despite its very restricted legal availability and general
negative societal attitudes toward it, gambling is still fairly common among certain segments
of the male population (especially the wealthy, the poor, the adventurous, and the young).
First Nations people continue to be avid gamblers.
Illegal off-track horse race betting becomes more common as does betting on organized
sports (e.g., baseball, football, hockey).
1910 Criminal Code amendment introduces more detailed information on how a legal pari-mutuel horse
race betting system should operate and designates the federal Ministry of Agriculture as the overseer
of this betting system (s.235).
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