Bar Slot Machine
Slot machine reelsymbols have been constant features since slot machines were inventedmany years ago. The most common of these symbols are the cherrysymbols and the BAR symbol which have been seen on standard slotmachine reels since 1909 and 1910. Initially, BAR was the companylogo of a particular firm and it was a picture of a bubble gum packthat was eventually redesigned as a BAR. Depending on how many reelsthe machine has, the BAR symbol that secures the win could either besingle or multiple.
History of the BARSymbol in Slot Machines
The logo definitely looks like a BAR symbol, so it makes sense why the bar would evolve from the company making the gum dispensed by these slot machines. But historians can get a bit skeptical. Introducing URComped Slot Machine Finder. URComped's Slot Machine Finder is a product of the URComped community where we have received uploads from thousands of members that have tagged pictures, videos, slot machines, and casinos of over 3,000 different slot machines at hundereds of casinos.
In 1910, HerbertStephen Mills of Mills Novelty Company rebranded the famous fruitreel symbols by adding the picture of a bubble gum pack. Eventually,it wasn’t just a combination of fruits and chewing gum packs, it wasjust a stylized bar. Some writers believe that the BAR symbol was thelogo of a Bell-Gum Fruit company. Keep in mind that in the early1900s, slot machines were illegal in the United States. At the time,slot machines were not called slot machines. They were calledone-armed bandits and they were known for literally swallowing moneyand hardly paying out.
The bad reputation of slot machines and the ban that was placed on slot machines didn’t discourage people from using them at all costs. The government had to put in several measures to make sure people stopped using machines that promised users significant cash prizes as the payout. To make the slot machines more interesting for players who didn’t want to break the law, producers eventually added the fruits and bubble gum symbols to the reels. Rather than getting cash payouts, the machines were set to pay out noncash prizes.
The Bell-Fruit Gumcompany was among the many companies that started taking advantage ofthis innovation. The company logo was added to almost every slotmachine that was produced at the time and it looked just like a BAR.Rather than serve as a slot machine, these machines were seen asvending machines because the pictures and logos of bubble gumcompanies were added to the side of every machine. There is still alot of controversy regarding the real name of the Bell-Fruit GumCompany but whatever the case may be, it is one of the most commonorigin stories of the BAR symbol.
There is anothertheory that Mills Novelty Company partnered with the Bell-Fruit GumCompany to use their logo on their slot machines. Eventually, theMills Novelty Company started creating slot machines with woodinstead of iron. This company was also responsible for inventing theslot machine jackpot. When the same symbol appears three times or acertain combination of symbols appear at the same time on the reels,the player would hit the jackpot and win big. All the coins in themachine will be paid out to the player.
What’s TheDifference Between Slot Machine Symbols And Icons?
Every slot machinehas a rich combination of symbols and icons. Both terms are used fortwo different things even if some individuals tend to interchangethem. All slot machines have pay tables and reels. It is on thesereels and pay tables that slot symbols appear. During each spin,different symbols spin around the reels. When the reels stopspinning, the outcome of the game is determined by the last symbolsthat are displayed on the reels. If you want to learn what eachsymbol will fetch you, you should study the paytable. All the detailsabout the symbols are displayed on the paytable. You’ll know whichcombinations you need to hit the jackpot or win any amount at all.
The first-ever gamemachine symbol was created by Charles Fey in 1895 and it was thesymbol of a playing card. The symbol was used for a machine that issimilar to the slot machine but was meant for poker. Different cardsymbols were created for these machines at the time. Many slotmachines today still use card symbols. Fey also created the libertybell symbol and horseshoe symbols.
The icon is the logoof the slot machine. It is usually designed based on the theme andname of the game. For example, if the name of a slot machine is Wheelof Fortune, the icon would be a wheel. If the title of the game isGods of Egypt, the icon can be a picture of Anubis or any othermythical creature in Egypt. The icon usually appears next to the nameof the game. Most games have more than one icon but all of them arebased on the theme of the machine. An icon is to a slot machine whata book cover is to a book. It is the manufacturer’s way of brandingthe slot machine so it can stand out from others in the market.
Types of SlotSymbols
We’ve mentioned afew of the most common slot symbols out there. However, there are somany others and different manufacturers are still coming up withunique slot machine symbols to make the game more interesting toplayers. We can’t talk about every symbol out there but we can talkabout the most common categories of slot symbols. Some of the mostcommon are as follows;
- Fruit Slot Machine Symbols
After the cardsymbols, the fruit symbols are the oldest slot machine symbols in theUnited States. The most common fruit symbols and the first to becreated were grapes, cherries, melons, lemons, and oranges. Machinesthat displayed these symbols are called fruit slot machines. Some ofthese machines paid people fruit gums instead of cash as statedearlier. When players saw lemons on the slot reels, they will be paidin lemon-flavored gums. If the reels displayed oranges, they would bepaid in orange-flavored gums. The number of gums players got dependedon the combination. The higher the winning combination, the more gumsplayers would get. These sorts of slot machines have beendiscontinued. Now, fruit slot machines payout cash prizes like otherslot machines. You can get bubble gums from your regular vendingmachines or chewing gum dispenser.
- Standard Reel Slot Symbols
The standard reelsymbols include but are not limited to symbols of Tens, Kings, Aces,Jacks, and Queens. They are as old as the slot machines themselves.The classic slots of old still come with these standard symbols butthe more modern slots like the video slot machines come with so manynew and beautiful symbols.
- Bonus Symbols
Every modern slotmachine comes with bonus symbols which give players numerous bonusamounts each time they appear on the reels.
- Scatter Symbols
You’ll also see thescatter symbols which can either pay your regular amount or give youyour regular amount along with a bonus.
- Wild Symbols
Let’s not forgetabout the wild symbols that are of different types and typicallyrepresent a winning combination. Having a wild symbol or two alongwith another symbol can give you a winning combination. Wild symbolsin slot machines can be compared to wild cards in card games.
These are just the major categories of slot symbols that you should expect to see in a typical slot machine. Each machine has subcategories and designs that represent their theme. With the production of new slot machines, it is a surprise that classic symbols are still in existence today. There are still many regular players who would rather not play a slot machine game than play a game without classic slots. These are the people that keep the tradition going and help them retain their relevance.
Bottomline
Whether it is theBAR symbol, card symbol or any other symbol listed above, you cannottalk about the origin of slot machines without talking about slotmachine symbols. Slot machines are here to stay. To make things evenmore exciting, you can play a slot game with your computer or mobiledevice when you don’t have the time to visit a landbased casino. Thecreation of online slot machines has only helped in promoting andmaintaining this game that has become a crucial part of the gamblingculture. As a final note of caution, you must gamble responsibly. Youmay not need a lot of money to play a single slot game but the amountcan pile up quickly. To minimize losses while playing slot games, gofor machines that offer unconditional free spins. This will help yousave money. Most importantly, make sure you play within your budgetno matter how interesting it is.
Introduction to Why Slot Machines Say Bar
Why do slot machines say bar on their reels? Well, to understand why this tradition came to be, we’ll have to delve into slot machine history. First of all, these gambling devices weren’t always called slot machines. Slot machines were originally referred to as a one-armed bandit, then later in Great Britain as a fruit machine.
A slot machine gambling device is activated by pulling a handle or pushing a button. This can only be done after coins, tokens, cash, or casino credits has been entered. Consequently, reels with symbols begin to spin. When done spinning, the symbols shown lined up along pay lines are used to determine the payout, if any.
Reel symbols are often traditional, including stars, bars, numbers, and various pictured fruits. Fruits can include cherries, plums, oranges, lemons, and watermelons. The number seven is also very popular. And, finally, then there are bar reel symbols.
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Bar Reel Symbols
Fruit reel symbols were first used in slot machine by the Industry Novelty Company in 1909. This was quickly followed the next year by Mills Novelty Company of Chicago, recently inherited by Herbert Stephen Mills. But, with a slight addition.
Mills added the photograph of a chewing gum pack along with the fruit reel symbols. Soon after, these photographs of a chewing gum pack were replaced with a stylized bar symbol.
Slot machines have a very rich history. Within gaming device circles of the time, it was well known that Charles Augustus Fey of San Francisco refused to sell or lease the design of his first coin-operated slot machine, the Liberty Bell, which he invented around 1887.
So, how did Mills get the design from Fey? There are two theories. First, that Fey cooperated with Mills to spread the use of slot machines. After all, Fey is known as the “Father of Slots” both for his invention of the coin-operated device as well as popularizing its use.
The second theory is Mills somehow “obtained” a Liberty Bell as a result of a San Francisco saloon robbery in 1905. Less than a year later, Mills produced a new version of the Liberty Bell called either the Mills Liberty Bell or Operator Bell.
During my review of the history of early slot machines, there are also suggestions the bar symbol may have another origin story. It is generally accepted that the bar symbol is a stylized image of a chewing gum pack, as well as a company logo.
According to some historical sources, however, the company having that logo may have been the Bell-Gum Fruit company.
A Bit More History
As mentioned, slot machines have a very rich history, especially in their early days. Besides Why Do Slot Machines Say Bar, there are a few other interesting historical items of interest.
In 1916, another historic slot machine innovation created by the Mills Novelty Company was the jackpot. When a specific combination of reel symbols resulted from a bet, the slot machine would empty its coin hopper of all coins as a prize.
The Mills Novelty would later go on to produce slot machines with wooden cabinets, rather than the original cast iron construction materials.
Photos of early slot machines are online at Cyprus Casino Consultant, Casino Observer, the International Arcade Museum, and elsewhere. I especially enjoy photos of antique slot machines in my copy of Slot Machines: A Pictorial History of the First 100 Years by Marshall Fey, grandson of “the Father of Slot Machines” Charles Fey.
The Cyprus Casino Consultant website shows 4 slot machines on a waist-high counter top. They appear to have wood cabinets and are each perhaps 30 inches high by 18 inches wide. In metric, that’s about 76 centimeters by 46 centimeters.
Each slot machine is of the one-armed bandit variety, meaning they appear to are activated by first inserting a coin and then pulling a large lever on the right side of the machine. Each of these models appears to accept coins at the top, as well as dispense coins for winners at the bottom.
The Casino Observer website also shows 4 slot machines. Two of these machines are some of the first slot machines, from about 1890, while two others are more modern, ~1940s. The two older slot machines receive coins, but only the poker machine appears to not be able to dispense coins. This poker machine has typical card suits as reel symbols and a cast metal-type cabinet.
It appears to be missing its one-armed bandit lever, perhaps due to damage, or it never had a lever. One older slot machine with coin dispenser capability is clearly identified as a “Liberty Bell”. It rests on cast feet located on each corner. The reel symbols show three Liberty Bells, but its “pay table” shows card suits – not fruit or bars.
The International Arcade Museum website shows a single slot machine. It’s a very old slot machine showing the symbol of the Liberty Bell on its front next to three reels showing Liberty Bell, bar, and fruit reel symbols.
This is probably a “Liberty Bell” by Charles Fey, but must be a slightly later version due to it having obvious fruit and bar reel symbols. It also has a cast metal-type cabinet and the distinctive “feet” of a Liberty Bell. It also has a small tray for coins, suggesting it has automatic payouts.
Charles Fey manufactured about 100 Liberty Bell slot machines for distribution in and around San Francisco. However, there are few of them remaining in existence. The scarcity of Fey’s Liberty Bell is a direct result of a natural disaster occurring shortly after their manufacture: the 1906 San Francisco Earthquake.
Electrocoin Cherry Bar Slot Machine Manual
Summary of Why Slot Machines Say Bar
Starting in 1907, Bell Fruit Gum slot machines were manufactured by Industry Novelty Co. They were followed by the Mills Novelty Company in 1910.
The reels on these slot machines included cherry, melon, orange, apple, and bar symbols with non-cash payouts in the form of fruit-flavored gum, allowing machine owners to avoid prosecution under the anti-gambling laws of that time.
The cherry and bar symbols became traditional to slot machines, and are still commonly used today. The bar symbol was a company logo, originally a photo of a chewing gum pack before being stylized as a bar.
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