1930
DECEMBER: State Lottery Bill Introduced
In late 1930, the newly elected State Government, led by Jack
Lang, decided the only course of action to solve the critical
funding situation in the States Hospitals was to start a State
Lottery.
This was during the Great Depression when money was as scarce
as jobs. Unemployment was nearly 30 per cent and queues of
jobless people outside soup kitchens were a common sight.
Poverty was increasing the sickness rate and authorities feared
that hospitals would not be able to cope if further outbreaks
such as the 1919 'flu epidemic occurred.
The announcement of a State Lottery created a political storm
and was denounced by the Churches and the Opposition. Condemnation
of the Lottery included comments such as, "Lotteries
are evil and degrading" and that "It is going to
demoralise the youth of our State".
Premier Lang told the Council of Churches that a State Lottery
was no more appealing to him than it was to them but the reality
was that unless money could be found some hospitals would
have to close their doors.
The Lotteries Act was proclaimed on the 22 nd June, 1931. Mr
W.H.Whiddon, the former Commissioner of Taxation in NSW, was
appointed the first Director of State Lotteries.
1931
JUNE: Lotteries Act Proclaimed AUGUST: The pavements were filled as people
queued outside the State Lottery Office to enter the first
lottery.
HER MAJESTY'S THEATRE IN PITT ST WAS HIRED FOR THE
DRAW OF THE FIRST LOTTERY.
Inside the enormous Lottery Barrel were 100,000 wooden marbles.
Joseph Lamaro, the Attorney-General, dipped the long scoop, which
could only hold one marble, into the barrel and drew out the
first prize marble.
"In the huge barrel on the stage, as in Pandora's
box, rested their hope of winning one or more if they were
especially fortunate of the 814 Prizes, ranging from £5,000
To £5. For the vast majority, however the drawing was
more conspicuous for its doomed hopes than its excitation.
On the 20 th August, 1931, the first state lottery was drawn
and a dream came true for Eileen Morton, a Manly housewife.
A week or so earlier she had taken the ferry to the city and
joined the end of the queue that stretched for three blocks
so she could buy a ticket in the Lottery. Mrs Morton won the
first prize of £5000 with a ticket she shared with her
grandmother. With the prize money, Mrs Morton and her husband,
Jim, built a house- and had enough left over to take a cruise
to Fiji."
The Sydney Morning Herald, 21 August
DECEMBER: Special Christmas Gift Lottery
with tickets at 10/6d ($1.05) on sale - first prize £9,000
($18,000).
1932 FEBRUARY/MARCH: Three lotteries, with tickets
costing one guinea each ($2.10) and a first prize of £20,000
($40,000), were introduced to mark the opening of the Sydney
Harbour Bridge.
1947 JUNE: Originally, the Department sold only one class of ticket - 5/3d.
That month, the price of these tickets was increased to 5/6d. Lotteries
with tickets at 10/- each and a first prise of £12,000 ($24,000) were introduced 1 July.
1957 NOVEMBER: To finance the building of the Sydney Opera House,
tickets in Opera House Lottery No.1 went on sale. Tickets were
£5 each ($10) with a first prize of £100,000 ($200,000).
"Today's the day to go Lotto!" was the heading in
the newspaper advertisements on the 22 nd October, 1979. Lotto
was on sale throughout the State for two weeks before the first
Monday night weekly draw was held.
Mike Walsh and Karen Pini hosted the first draw, which was screened
on Channel 9 on the 5 th November, 1979, using a Lotto ball
drawing machine made by Hans Brosch Electrotechnick, a West
German company. Division One was $384,975 and the winning combination
of 6 numbers out of 40 was not selected.
The State's first Lotto millionaire was Sam Fabio, a Western
suburbs truck driver with four small children. He won $1,185,872
for an investment of just $2.60, in the Monday night draw on
17 th March, 1980.
1986
AUGUST: A new Half Million Dollar Lottery costing $5
per ticket and a new Million Dollar Lottery costing $10 per
ticket were introduced.
SEPTEMBER: The last Opera House Lottery (No.
867) was drawn.
OCTOBER: A Peace Lottery went 'on-line', and
the Jackpot Lottery was revamped allowing for more cash prizes
and a $20,000 per Lottery jackpot component.
2002
APRIL: The $2 Jackpot Lottery was revamped with the jackpot increment increasing from $50,000 to $75,000 per draw. The number of tickets in each lottery rose from 180,000 to 200,000.
2004
APRIL: An extra (45th) ball was added to Monday and Wednesday Lotto bringing it into line with the same game matrix for Saturday Lotto, 6 from 45.
Cash Roll Down was introduced to Monday and Wednesday Lotto which doubles the prize amounts in Divisions 2 to 5 when there are no prize winners in Division 1.
Lotto Strike was added to Saturday Lotto, making it available for all three Lotto draws held Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
2008
JUNE: The biggest lottery prize ever offered in Australia was won by one entry, which scooped the $58.7 million First Division prize in the record Powerball draw.
The role of NSW Lotteries in raising money to help pay for important community projects is as relevant today as it was when we began operations in 1931.
As we move into a new century the only safe prediction is that many of the lottery games of the future may look different to your current portfolio.
Some things are too important to change, however. We will continue to responsibly develop games that contribute to the benefit of the community with the support of our customers. NSW Lotteries will continue to transform dreams into reality for many years to come.
