Early Lottery

On January 28, 1817 territorial Governor William Clark signed an act authorizing a lottery in St. Louis to raise funds for fire-fighting equipment and fire engines.

The lottery was designed to sell 6,000 tickets at $5 each. Half of the tickets would pay a prize ranging from $6 to a grand prize of $5,000. The territorial legislators hoped the lottery would generate a $3,000 profit.

But, the conservative nature of Missourians resulted in the lottery being called a "complete failure." Twenty-two months later in November 1818 the Missouri Gazette reported that Missourians were so "against lotteries that nothing could be done in that way to raise money.."

St. Louis got its first 2 fire engines in 1819. They were purchased by private subscription.

Source

• Shoemaker, Floyd Calvin. Missouri Day by Day, Volume 1. Columbia, MO: State Historical Society of Missouri, 1942.