A Brief History of Bunco
Bunco started in 19th century England as Eight Dice Cloth and was played as a social game. Around 1855, Eight Dice Cloth was brought to the United States where a less than honest gambler changed the name to Bunco, which became known as Three Card Monte* or Find The Queen, a game run by con artists. Bunco showed up in the California gold fields and was played in the camps or in Bunco Parlors run by dishonest proprieters to separate the miners' gold from the miners. Bunco came to mean any type of swindle or confidence game.
In the mid 1860s, Bunco changed into a popular game for social gatherings. In the 1920s and during Prohibition, Bunco became popular again but as a speakeasy gambling game. The police who raided these games came to be known as Bunco Squads. Despite its shady history, Bunco became a popular social and family game in the 1980s.
Starting with Eight Card Dice through the present, Bunco has always involved money. Modern Bunco uses small amounts of money contributed by players and all the money it gets paid out to players who qualify. It is still a game of chance but no cheating and no swindling. While there is still money involved, the main goal of the Bunco parties where the game is played, is to have fun and enjoy the other players' company.
*Three Card Monte is also played with walnut shells, cups and many other things. If you aren't familier with Three Card Monte click here for a Youtube video showing how the game is played and how the player is cheated - in this version it's find the red ace.