Beginning in the late 1930s electricity began finding its way into the design of slot and other gambling machines.  These machines had previously relied on complex mechanical designs to perform their functions. This "electrification" trend would continue as the machines evolved into the sophisticated computer-controlled devices of today.  Electronic circuits had several advantages over mechanisms.  Mechanical machines were necessarily complex in order to perform the various functions required of them.  This complexity was expensive to build and maintain and could easily lead to jamming—putting a machine out of commission.  Electrical relays, motors, steppers and other simple devices enabled a machine to perform complex operations with mechanical simplicity.  Plus, the addition of flashing lights was a great way to make the machine more exciting to play.

Big boxy "console" slot machines evolved.  These machines had elegant cabinetry, flashing lights, and made lots of noise when they paid off.  Some, like the Mills 3 Bells, were "hybrids" which used a conventional mechanical 3-reel slot machine mechanism which was outfitted with switches and actuators to integrate it with the machine electronics.  This unique configuration provided a great degree of flexibility in how the machine could function.  The 3 Bells allowed 3 different bets to be made on one pull of the machine and payoffs were made to the respective payoff cups.  Another family of console slot machines referred to as "spinners" evolved.  These machines had a spinning light arm beneath an illustrated glass that replaced the spinning reels of a conventional slot.  The spinning light would stop on a selection and the machine would pay off if it was a winner.  H. C. Evans and Buckley developed a series of "spinners" with themes like horse racing and dominoes.

The Evans Winterbook allowed bets to be placed on any combination of seven horses.  Coins were inserted into an electro-mechanical "coin head" that registered the bets.  The winning horse was paid out according to a rotating odds drum that randomly assigned odds to each individual horse in the race.  To make it even more interesting, a separate small light spinner selected a jackpot winner.  If the jackpot winner coincided with the winning horse AND a special indicator on the odds drum for that horse, a token, redeemable for cash, was awarded by the machine.  Evans produced several variations of their "spinner" including Winterbook, Bang Tails, Pacers, Galloping Dominoes, Rolletto and Lucky Star.

The machine above was once located in the Elks Lodge in Marion, OH.  The wood was in bad shape and a family of mice had used it for a home.  It was recently restored to the condition shown. I plan to do more work to the coin head and payout cup at some point.