The earliest recorded lotteries involved buying tickets for money. In the Low Countries, public lotteries raised money for town fortifications and the poor. These lotteries were popular and hailed as painless taxation. The oldest continuously-running lottery is the Staatsloterij (State Lottery). The name lottery comes from a Dutch noun meaning “fate”.
In the 17th century, Benjamin Franklin organized a lottery to raise money for cannons for the defense of Philadelphia. Some lotteries offered prizes as “Pieces of Eight.” George Washington’s Mountain Road Lottery was unsuccessful, but his rare signed lottery tickets became collector’s items. A ticket bearing his signature sold for $15,000 in 2007! George Washington also became the manager of Col. Bernard Moore’s “Slave Lottery” in 1769. The lottery advertised slaves and land as prizes.
Lotteries were also used in colonial America to raise funds for bridges, roads, and libraries. Princeton and Columbia University were financed with lotteries. The University of Pennsylvania was founded with the help of the Academy Lottery in 1755. During the French and Indian Wars, various colonies used lotteries to raise money for public projects. In 1758, the Commonwealth of Massachusetts raised funds for its “Expedition against Canada”.
The first time I won the lottery, I thought I would spend it on a big sailing ship. But then I sat down with half a dozen circus performers, including a dinosaur trainer. But, when I realized that I was sitting next to Lotto Gluck, I couldn’t believe it. I was laughing so hard! In the meantime, I cried a lot. I was overwhelmed with joy and excitement! I couldn’t believe I’d won!
The chances of winning a jackpot are different for each lotto. The odds vary depending on the lottery’s design, number of winning numbers drawn, and order of returned numbers. However, most lotteries award lesser prizes for matching some of the winning numbers. For this reason, it’s worth playing a small amount for the possibility of winning something. These additional prizes increase the value of the ticket. There are no guarantees. Therefore, you should play responsibly.
The jackpot prize in the Lotto is $2 million, and it is Illinois’s only $2 lotto game. If you win, you have three chances to become a millionaire. Match your numbers to the White Ball, or the Star Ball to win the jackpot. If you match all five numbers, you win the jackpot. However, you must claim your prize within 365 days after the drawing. The amount of the jackpot prize pool is determined by the number of winners.