Jackpot is an

unincorporated community An unincorporated area is a parcel of land that is not governed by a local general-purpose municipal corporation. (At p. 178.) They may be governed or serviced by an encompassing unit (such as a county) or another branch of the state (such as th ...

and

census-designated place A census-designated place (CDP) is a Place (United States Census Bureau), concentration of population defined by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes only. CDPs have been used in each decennial census since 1980 as the counte ...

(CDP) in Elko County,

Nevada Nevada ( ; ) is a landlocked state in the Western United States. It borders Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. Nevada is the seventh-most extensive, th ...

, United States. The population was 855 as of the 2020 census. Located less than from the

Idaho Idaho ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest and Mountain states, Mountain West subregions of the Western United States. It borders Montana and Wyoming to the east, Nevada and Utah to the south, and Washington (state), ...

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 south of

Twin Falls, Idaho Twin Falls is the county seat of and the largest city in Twin Falls County, Idaho, United States. The city had a population of 51,807 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census.

, 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. In addition to its casino industry, Jackpot has its own schools, golf course, and post office. Its

elevation The elevation of a geographic location (geography), ''location'' is its height above or below a fixed reference point, most commonly a reference geoid, a mathematical model of the Earth's sea level as an equipotential gravitational equipotenti ...

is approximately above

sea level Mean sea level (MSL, often shortened to sea level) is an mean, average surface level of one or more among Earth's coastal Body of water, bodies of water from which heights such as elevation may be measured. The global MSL is a type of vertical ...

. Jackpot observes

Mountain Time The Mountain Time Zone of North America keeps time by subtracting seven hours from Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) when standard time ( UTC−07:00) is in effect, and by subtracting six hours during daylight saving time ( UTC−06:00). The clo ...

, along with other Idaho border towns such as Jarbidge, Mountain City and Owyhee, due to its economic ties with the

Magic Valley The Magic Valley, also known as South Central Idaho, is a region in south-central Idaho constituting Blaine, Camas, Cassia, Gooding, Jerome, Lincoln, Minidoka, and Twin Falls counties. It is particularly associated with the agricultural reg ...

region of southern Idaho. The

Nevada Department of Transportation The Nevada Department of Transportation (Nevada DOT or NDOT) is a government agency in the U.S. state of Nevada. NDOT is responsible for maintaining and improving Nevada's highway system, which includes U.S. highways and Interstate highways with ...

and

Federal Aviation Administration The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is a Federal government of the United States, U.S. federal government agency within the United States Department of Transportation, U.S. Department of Transportation that regulates civil aviation in t ...

recognize this local unofficial observance.

History

After Idaho outlawed all forms of casino gaming in 1954, "Cactus Pete" Piersanti and Don French moved their

slot machine A slot machine, fruit machine (British English), poker machine or pokie (Australian English and New Zealand English) is a gambling machine that creates a game of chance for its customers. A slot machine's standard layout features a screen disp ...

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. 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. Because the club owners could not agree on a name, the county commissioners renamed it a month later as "Unincorporated Town No. 1". The clubs compromised on the name "Jackpot" in 1959. Jackpot has been noted for its colorful place name which has been said to be the most unusual in the state of Nevada. 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. Cactus Pete's management took over the Horseshu in 1964 to form what would eventually become Ameristar Casinos. 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.

Geography

Jackpot is located near

Salmon Falls Creek Salmon Falls Creek is a tributary of the Snake River, flowing from northern Nevada into Idaho in the United States. Formed in high mountains at the northern edge of the Great Basin, Salmon Falls Creek flows northwards ,U.S. Geological Survey. Na ...

and north of Middle Stack Mountain in the Granite Range of northeast Nevada. Jackpot is located about east (but by road) of the unincorporated town of Jarbidge and the

Jarbidge Wilderness The Jarbidge Wilderness is a wilderness area located in the Jarbidge Mountains of northern Elko County in northeastern Nevada, United States. It is contained within the Jarbidge Ranger District of the Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest. "Jarb ...

Demographics

The 2010 United States census reported that Jackpot had a population of 1,195. The racial makeup of Jackpot was 61%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

(41% Non-Hispanic White), 1%

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

, 32% from other races, and 4% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

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 Family (from ) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictability, structure, and safety as ...

(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

humid continental climate A humid continental climate is a climatic region defined by Russo-German climatologist Wladimir Köppen in 1900, typified by four distinct seasons and large seasonal temperature differences, with warm to hot (and often humid) summers, and cold ...

(

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...

''Dfb'') bordering a

semi-arid climate A semi-arid climate, semi-desert climate, or steppe climate is a dry climate sub-type. It is located on regions that receive precipitation below potential evapotranspiration, but not as low as a desert climate. There are different kinds of se ...

(''BSk'') with hot summers and cold winters. Even with its relatively cool average temperature, Jackpot receives barely enough

precipitation In meteorology, precipitation is any product of the condensation of atmospheric water vapor that falls from clouds due to gravitational pull. The main forms of precipitation include drizzle, rain, rain and snow mixed ("sleet" in Commonwe ...

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.

Transportation

U.S. Route 93 U.S. Route 93 (US 93) is a major north–south U.S. Numbered Highway in the western United States, that connects U.S. Route 60 (US 60) in Wickenburg, Arizona, with British Columbia Highway 93 at the Canadian border (north of ...

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 Magic Valley Regional Airport , also known as Joslin Field, is a public use airport located four nautical miles (7 km) south of the central business district of Twin Falls, Idaho. The airport is owned by the City and County of Twin Fal ...

in Twin Falls. The community is also served by Jackpot Airport.

Education

Jackpot has a

public library A public library is a library, most often a lending library, that is accessible by the general public and is usually funded from public sources, such as taxes. It is operated by librarians and library paraprofessionals, who are also Civil servic ...

, a branch of the Elko-Lander-Eureka County Library System. Jackpot has a K-12 school known as the Jackpot Combined School. The school houses 284 students.

Casino industry

Jackpot has five main

hotel A hotel is an establishment that provides paid lodging on a short-term basis. Facilities provided inside a hotel room may range from a modest-quality mattress in a small room to large suites with bigger, higher-quality beds, a dresser, a re ...

s and

motel A motel, also known as a motor hotel, motor inn or motor lodge, is a hotel designed for motorists, usually having each room entered directly from the Parking lot, parking area for motor vehicles rather than through a central Lobby (room), lo ...

s with

casino A casino is a facility for gambling. Casinos are often built near or combined with hotels, resorts, restaurants, retail shops, cruise ships, and other tourist attractions. Some casinos also host live entertainment, such as stand-up comedy, conce ...

s: * Barton's Club 93 * Cactus Pete's, owned by Penn National Gaming, is the largest hotel in Jackpot with 300 guest rooms * Four Jacks Hotel and Casino * Horseshu Hotel and Casino, owned by Penn National Gaming. The casino is currently closed, but the hotel's 100 guest rooms remain open * West Star Hotel and Casino, the hotel here remains open but the casino has been closed since summer 2022 * Dotty's 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 south of Jackpot. The project was delayed when the county mistakenly rezoned the land for the project. 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

*A 2003

episode An episode is a narrative unit within a larger dramatic work or documentary production, such as a serial (radio and television), series intended for radio, television or Streaming media, streaming consumption. Etymology The noun ''episode'' is ...

of '' CSI: Crime Scene Investigation'' is set in Jackpot, but none of the scenes were filmed there; Fawnskin, California, a town in the heavily wooded Big Bear Valley, was Jackpot's stand-in in that episode.

References

External links

https://www.townofjackpot.com/

Elko County – Jackpot Advisory Board

Nevada
{{Authority control Census-designated places in Elko County, Nevada Populated places established in 1954 Elko, Nevada micropolitan area 1954 establishments in Nevada