ABSTRACT
Casino history, development, and legislation in Australia can be best understood within the wider context of the development of gambling in Australia. Casinos are a relatively recent addition to the Australian gambling sector, with the first legal casino, Wrest Point, being established in the state of Tasmania in 1973. There are thirteen casinos in Australia, at least one in every state and territory, and each state and territory maintains its own legislation and policies regarding casinos. However, Australian casino history and development needs to be seen against a background of evolving social and economic conditions that affected government policies from the earliest days of European settlement in Australia. Four major historical periods have been identified by the Australian Institute for Gambling Research (1999) in the transformation and redefining of Australian government policy on gambling:
The period of early colonization from 1778 to 1900, characterized by selective prohibition of gambling
A period of selective legalization from 1900 to the 1940s
A period of government endorsement and market growth from World War II (1939–1945) to the 1970s
A period of commercialization, competition, and market expansion from the 1970s to the present (Australian Institute for Gambling Research, 1999, p. i)
