It is believed that the modern version of the game was invented in the 1890s by Richard A. Canfield. The game was introduced at Canfield’s Casino in Saratoga Springs, New York as a betting game. A solitaire card game may seem like an odd choice for a casino, but the man was onto something.
Patrons would buy a deck of cards for $50 and try to win their money back by playing Canfield solitaire. For each card moved to a foundation pile, they would receive $5. If a player won, that would mean $260, for a $210 profit. Mostly, people just tried to win back the money they’d spent on the cards.