Basic history of euchre
Euchre is a trick-taking card game that is most commonly played by 4 people in teams of 2. A standard deck of 24, 28 or 32 playing cards is used. Euchre is responsible for the inclusion of Joker cards in modern day playing card packs, as these were invented around 1860 to act as top trump cards. Many believe Euchre to be closely related to the French card game Ecarte that became popular in the United States through Pennsylvania Dutch and Cornish. Euchre was first played in Europe around the mid 1700s as an early version that originated in France called Ruff.
Euchre would eventually be played in early 19th century America, according to published documents in 1844, where “Uker” played a part of an incident described by Joe Cowell as occurring on a steamboat trip from Louisville to New Orleans in 1829. The first description of Euchre is seen in an American Hoyle of 1845 and the first book on Euchre was published in 1850.
By Steven Vitte
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Be sure to check out EuchreFun.com for free Euchre Printables page.