Fort Towson

Jackpot is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Elko County, Nevada, United States. The population was 855 as of the 2020 census.[2] Located less than one mile (1.6 km) from the Idaho border on US 93, Jackpot has been a popular casino gaming destination for residents of Idaho and other neighboring states since its founding.

Jackpot is located 47 miles (76 km) south of Twin Falls, Idaho, a city of approximately 50,000. Although officially part of the Elko micropolitan area, Jackpot is often considered part of the Greater Twin Falls region.[3]

In addition to its casino industry, Jackpot has its own schools,[4] golf course,[5] and post office.[6] Its elevation is approximately 5,200 feet (1,580 m) above sea level.

Jackpot, along with the rest of Nevada except for the city of West Wendover, is legally in the Pacific Time Zone,[7] but, along with other Idaho border towns such as Jarbidge, Mountain City and Owyhee, unofficially observes Mountain Time,[8][9] due to its economic ties with the Magic Valley region of southern Idaho. The Nevada Department of Transportation and Federal Aviation Administration recognize this local unofficial observance.[10][11][12]

History

After Idaho outlawed all forms of casino gaming in 1954,[13][14][15][16] "Cactus Pete" Piersanti and Don French moved their slot machine operations from Idaho to the Jackpot townsite. Piersanti's and French's gaming establishments were named Cactus Pete's and the Horseshu Club, respectively. Piersanti in particular is credited for founding Jackpot.[17]

In May 1958, the settlement was first recognized by the Elko County commissioners as an unincorporated town named "Horse Shu", with a population of 65, despite a protest over the name by Cactus Pete's.[18] Because the club owners could not agree on a name, the county commissioners renamed it a month later as "Unincorporated Town No. 1".[19] The clubs compromised on the name "Jackpot" in 1959.[20] Jackpot has been noted for its colorful place name which has been said to be the most unusual in the state of Nevada.[21][22]

By 1960, the population had reached 400, but most residents were living in trailers because banks would not approve building loans, being unsure of the town's long-term prospects.[23]

Cactus Pete's management took over the Horseshu in 1964 to form what would eventually become Ameristar Casinos.[24] Cactus Pete's and Horseshu, as well as the independent Barton's Club 93 and the Four Jacks Casino, form the basis of the town's economy to this day.

Geography

Jackpot is located near Salmon Falls Creek and north of Middle Stack Mountain in the Granite Range of northeast Nevada. Jackpot is located about fifty miles (80 km) east (but eighty miles (130 km) by road) of the unincorporated town of Jarbidge and the Jarbidge Wilderness.

Demographics

Historical population
CensusPop.Note
2020855
U.S. Decennial Census[25]

The 2010 United States Census[26] reported that Jackpot had a population of 1,195. The racial makeup of Jackpot was 61% White (41% Non-Hispanic White),[27] 1% African American, 32% from other races, and 4% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 56%.

There were 451 households, out of which 33% had children under the age of 18 living in them. The average household size was 2.65. There were 266 families (59% of all households); the average family size was 3.60.

The population was spread out, with 31% under the age of 18 and 9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34.2 years.

There were 622 housing units, of which 28% were vacant. Of the occupied units, 36% were owner-occupied and 65% were rented.

The median household income was $39,926, with 15% of the population living below the federal poverty line.

Climate

Jackpot experiences a semi-arid climate with hot summers and cold winters. Even with its relatively cool average temperature, Jackpot receives barely enough precipitation to avoid being classified as a desert climate. Due to Jackpot's high elevation and aridity, temperatures drop sharply after sunset. Summer nights are comfortably cool, even chilly. Winter highs are generally above freezing, and winter nights are bitterly cold, with temperatures often dropping to zero or below.

Climate data for Jackpot, Nevada, 1991–2020 normals, extremes 1986–present
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °F (°C) 61
(16)
74
(23)
78
(26)
87
(31)
97
(36)
102
(39)
105
(41)
102
(39)
100
(38)
86
(30)
74
(23)
63
(17)
105
(41)
Mean maximum °F (°C) 49.5
(9.7)
55.8
(13.2)
66.5
(19.2)
75.9
(24.4)
82.6
(28.1)
92.0
(33.3)
98.3
(36.8)
96.3
(35.7)
90.9
(32.7)
79.1
(26.2)
64.7
(18.2)
52.3
(11.3)
99.0
(37.2)
Mean daily maximum °F (°C) 38.6
(3.7)
41.3
(5.2)
49.8
(9.9)
56.5
(13.6)
66.4
(19.1)
77.2
(25.1)
88.5
(31.4)
86.8
(30.4)
76.6
(24.8)
62.6
(17.0)
48.0
(8.9)
38.0
(3.3)
60.9
(16.0)
Daily mean °F (°C) 25.4
(−3.7)
28.7
(−1.8)
35.8
(2.1)
41.5
(5.3)
50.3
(10.2)
59.1
(15.1)
68.4
(20.2)
66.4
(19.1)
56.7
(13.7)
44.4
(6.9)
33.3
(0.7)
25.3
(−3.7)
44.6
(7.0)
Mean daily minimum °F (°C) 12.1
(−11.1)
16.0
(−8.9)
21.7
(−5.7)
26.5
(−3.1)
34.1
(1.2)
41.1
(5.1)
48.3
(9.1)
46.1
(7.8)
36.7
(2.6)
26.2
(−3.2)
18.6
(−7.4)
12.6
(−10.8)
28.3
(−2.0)
Mean minimum °F (°C) −4.1
(−20.1)
1.1
(−17.2)
9.4
(−12.6)
16.1
(−8.8)
24.5
(−4.2)
31.8
(−0.1)
39.8
(4.3)
36.7
(2.6)
25.9
(−3.4)
14.0
(−10.0)
4.7
(−15.2)
−5.1
(−20.6)
−10.2
(−23.4)
Record low °F (°C) −30
(−34)
−26
(−32)
−4
(−20)
9
(−13)
13
(−11)
24
(−4)
28
(−2)
25
(−4)
20
(−7)
−6
(−21)
−18
(−28)
−29
(−34)
−30
(−34)
Average precipitation inches (mm) 0.94
(24)
0.66
(17)
0.90
(23)
1.22
(31)
1.76
(45)
1.25
(32)
0.58
(15)
0.69
(18)
0.87
(22)
1.06
(27)
0.73
(19)
0.70
(18)
11.36
(291)
Average snowfall inches (cm) 4.6
(12)
3.6
(9.1)
2.0
(5.1)
2.6
(6.6)
0.3
(0.76)
0.0
(0.0)
0.0
(0.0)
0.0
(0.0)
0.0
(0.0)
0.6
(1.5)
2.8
(7.1)
6.7
(17)
23.2
(59.16)
Average extreme snow depth inches (cm) 4.1
(10)
3.0
(7.6)
1.1
(2.8)
0.9
(2.3)
0.2
(0.51)
0.0
(0.0)
0.0
(0.0)
0.0
(0.0)
0.0
(0.0)
0.5
(1.3)
1.2
(3.0)
2.6
(6.6)
5.2
(13)
Average precipitation days (≥ 0.01 in) 4.5 3.8 4.6 6.6 8.3 4.6 3.5 3.2 3.0 3.7 4.1 4.9 54.8
Average snowy days (≥ 0.1 in) 2.9 2.2 1.6 1.7 0.2 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.3 1.9 3.6 14.4
Source 1: NOAA[28]
Source 2: National Weather Service[29]

Transportation

U.S. Route 93 bisects the town as it travels north towards Twin Falls and south towards Wells. The closest airport with commercial service is Magic Valley Regional Airport in Twin Falls. The community is also served by Jackpot Airport.

Education

Jackpot has a public library, a branch of the Elko-Lander-Eureka County Library System.[30]

Casino industry

Jackpot has five main hotels and motels with casinos:

In 2005, Triad Resorts announced plans to build the Spanish Bit Resort and Casino, a resort casino with indoor waterpark and event center located on 113 acres (0.46 km2) south of Jackpot.[31] The project was delayed when the county mistakenly rezoned the land for the project.[32] It was previously on schedule to be built starting in late 2010 or early 2011 after zoning and other concerns were addressed by developers and Elko County officials, but there has been no further news or development on the project since.

In popular culture

Notes

  1. ^ "ArcGIS REST Services Directory". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved September 19, 2022.
  2. ^ "Jackpot CDP, Nevada - Census Bureau Profile". data.census.gov. Retrieved May 7, 2022.
  3. ^ "Twin Falls". Visitidaho.org. Archived from the original on August 23, 2010. Retrieved October 29, 2010.
  4. ^ "Jackpot Combined School". Elko.k12.nv.us. Archived from the original on July 24, 2011. Retrieved October 29, 2010.
  5. ^ "Jackpot Golf Club". Thegolfcourses.net. Retrieved October 29, 2010.
  6. ^ "USPS Blue Mailbox and Post Office Locations". Payphone-project.com. Retrieved October 29, 2010.
  7. ^ "CFR 2013 Title 49 Volume 1 Part 71 STANDARD TIME ZONE BOUNDARIES" (PDF). gpo.gov. Retrieved July 5, 2014.
  8. ^ "Jackpot, Nevada Current Local Time and Time Zone". TimeTemperature.com. Retrieved July 3, 2014.
  9. ^ Steve Jones. "Time Zone Exceptions and Oddities". OnTimeZone.com. Archived from the original on March 18, 2014.
  10. ^ "U.S. Airport/Facility Directory" (PDF).
  11. ^ "Official Nevada Highway Map" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on April 25, 2013. Retrieved July 6, 2014.
  12. ^ "Google Maps".
  13. ^ "Supreme Court outlaws slots in sweeping decision". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). Associated Press. December 24, 1953. p. 1.
  14. ^ "Idaho's high court outlaws slots, other gaming devices". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). Associated Press. December 24, 1953. p. 1.
  15. ^ "Last of Idaho slot machines go out tonight". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). Associated Press. December 31, 1953. p. 1.
  16. ^ "Idaho slots to die tonight; some already sent to Nevada". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). Associated Press. December 31, 1953. p. 6.
  17. ^ "Casino Chip & Gaming Token Collection - Cactus Jack's Casino 2001 Commemorative Booklet" (PDF). Retrieved September 18, 2017.
  18. ^ "Clubs stir fuss over town name". Spokesman-Review. Spokane, WA. AP. May 10, 1958.
  19. ^ "Mundane name picked for gaming town". Ogden Standard-Examiner. Ogden, UT. AP. June 8, 1958. Retrieved July 7, 2014.
  20. ^ "Slots town takes name of Jackpot". Free Lance-Star. Fredericksburg, VA. AP. April 8, 1959.
  21. ^ Symons, Mitchell (November 8, 2012). The Bumper Book for the Loo: Facts and figures, stats and stories – an unputdownable treat of trivia. Transworld. pp. 270–. ISBN 978-1-4481-5271-1.
  22. ^ "These Are the Weirdest Town Names in Each U.S. State".
  23. ^ "New little Reno is a homey place". Spokesman-Review. Spokane, WA. AP. November 14, 1960.
  24. ^ Ameristar Casinos - About Ameristar - History Archived 2008-07-26 at the Wayback Machine
  25. ^ "Census of Population and Housing". Census.gov. Retrieved June 4, 2016.
  26. ^ "Geographic Identifiers: 2010 Demographic Profile Data (G001): Jackpot CDP, Nevada". U.S. Census Bureau, American Factfinder. Retrieved February 16, 2016.[dead link]
  27. ^ "Florence-Graham CDP QuickFacts from the US Census Bureau". Archived from the original on July 2, 2012. Retrieved September 8, 2012.
  28. ^ "U.S. Climate Normals Quick Access – Station: Jackpot, NV". National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Retrieved February 9, 2023.
  29. ^ "NOAA Online Weather Data – NWS Elko". National Weather Service. Retrieved February 9, 2023.
  30. ^ "Nevada Public Libraries". PublicLibraries.com. Retrieved June 14, 2019.
  31. ^ ""Triad Needs Land Rezoned", Twin Falls Times News')" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on October 25, 2007. Retrieved October 13, 2007.
  32. ^ "Zoning mistake delays Jackpot casino project", Twin Falls Times News, September 22, 2007
  33. ^ "Jackpot". November 6, 2003. Retrieved September 18, 2017 – via www.imdb.com.
  34. ^ "Jackpot". CSI Files. November 6, 2003. Retrieved May 24, 2019 – via www.csifiles.com.

External links

https://www.townofjackpot.com/