Cowboy Poker

[ll_billym]

What variants of poker did cowboys play in the wild west (2nd half of the 1800's)

[Sequin]

If the films are to be belived, it was always 5 card draw poker

[Octavius]

English actor Joseph Crowell described the game as played in New Orleans in 1829: played with a deck of 20 cards, four players bet on which player's hand of cards was the most valuable.

Soon after this spread, the full 52-card English deck was used, and the flush was introduced. During the American Civil War, many additions were made, including draw poker, stud poker (the five-card variant), and the straight. Further American developments followed, such as the wild card (around 1875), lowball and split-pot poker (around 1900), and community card poker games (around 1925).