Bridge can be traced back to the early 16th century when a game called Whist was played in England. Through the centuries, Whist evolved and grew steadily in popularity. Early in the 1890's, bridge appeared on the American scene at about the same time it was introduced in England. The game underwent many changes until Harold S. Vanderbilt perfected a new form of bridge in 1925. It incorporated many of the most popular principles and also produced a scoring table. He succeeded so well that his game of "Contract Bridge" became the staple diet of card players everywhere.

The word "bridge" comes from Russian Whist, called "biritch," meaning announcer or herald. Bridge players announce their contract bids.

1742 - The first book devoted to Whist appeared, Edmond Hoyle's Short Treatise, which became a best seller.

1857 - The first game of duplicate Whist was played in London; this eliminated much of the luck involved in which card each player was dealt. It was the forerunner of modern duplicate bridge.

1903 - British civil servants in remote India developed the practice of bidding for the privilege of calling the trump suit, thus introducing "auction bridge."

1925 - Harold S. Vanderbilt, American multi-millionaire and three-time America's Cup winner, changed the course of bridge while on a cruise. He suggested that only tricks bid and made count toward game, with extra tricks counted as bonuses. These revised rules turned auction bridge into contract bridge.

1931 - The Culbertson Summary and Culbertson's Blue Book topped all book sales for the year, outselling such popular titles as Believe It or Not and Crossword Puzzles! "The Battle of the Century" was held in New York City. The team captained by Ely Culbertson won by 8980 points.

1953 - President Eisenhower played bridge regularly on Saturday night with top experts. He attended national bridge tournaments when possible. He enjoyed bridge as much as golf and he was considered an excellent player.

1958 - Charles Goren appeared on the cover of Time magazine and was dubbed "The King of Aces." The inside story explained the basic rules of bridge and proclaimed it the "United States' No. 1 card game."

1990's - There are millions of bridge players in the United States; most play at home and there are also more than 1000 American tournaments annually and 4200 American bridge clubs.

Back to home page