There’s no doubt that Americans love lotteries. There is a long history of lottery in the United States, which is hardly surprising considering the lure of easy money. We all wish we were the blue collar worker who hit it big and is now retiring in Hawaii. For some people, even a losing lottery ticket can bring excitement Đ because for some collectors of historic artifacts, lottery tickets are valuable collectibles.

Take the earliest lottery held in the United States Đ the Massachusetts Government Lottery begun in 1744. Tickets sold for this lottery are prized because they are a very early piece of Americana, and are signed by Samuel Watts and other directors of the lottery.

If you were there in 1744 and wanted to purchase a ticket, it would have cost you thirty shillings, but you would have had a 22% chance of being a winner. You would have gone to Faneuil Hall for the first drawing. This lottery was such a huge success that it inspired the other colonies to host their own lotteries.

Benjamin Franklin even organized lotteries. He held his to raise money for purchasing arms for the military arsenal. Many collectors seek this tickets because Franklin was one of America’s founding fathers.

There was even a lottery to finance the Revolutionary War. In November of 1776, the Continental Congress authorized the United States Lottery for this purpose. Many collectors of early American historical artifacts prize these lottery tickets.

Another famous historic lottery is the Mountain Road Lottery of 1768. This lottery was managed by George Washington Đ and the tickets from this lottery bear his autograph. For this reason, collectors also seek out these tickets.

In a recent auction, lottery tickets with Washington’s signature sold for more than $15,000 each. If you want a piece of history to display, you can get an authentic reprint for a fraction of this price, and they are still quite striking on display.

The excitement of collecting lottery tickets may not compare to the excitement of actually winning the lottery, but it is still pretty neat for collectors who enjoy this hobby.

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