Michael Adkins 
One of the most famous women in the history of gambling is Lottie Deno, who became famous during the Wild West. She was a skilled poker player and earned the nickname Poker Queen. She once beat legendary gambler Doc Holliday at the poker table. She was born in 1844, and spent much of her youth traveling. Despite her modest origins, Deno achieved enormous fame. She died at age 77.
During the wild west era of the 1860s, Lottie Deno was a pioneer of the profession. She defeated Doc Holliday and was renowned as the most famous female gambler in the West. Another famous woman gambler was Eleanor Dumont, who dominated the game of Blackjack in the 1850s in Nevada before her tragic end in the 1870s.
Another famous woman gambler is Anette Obrestad, who once ran multiple brothels in the mid-west. Her aggressiveness earned her a reputation as one of the fiercest women in the industry. She even shot a man who tried to overstep her boundaries. Other notable women gamblers include Alice Deno, who is considered to be one of the most famous women in poker history.
Annette Oberstand is another famous woman who has earned worldwide fame by winning tournaments. She is the first woman to be inducted into the Nevada Gambling Hall of Fame. Her contributions to the Las Vegas gambling industry are legendary and she was instrumental in the evolution of the Vegas strip. In addition to that, she was the youngest woman to open a gambling club in Texas when she was just twenty-one-years-old.
Several other well-known women in gambling history have been born to famous men. Judy Bayley, also known as the first lady of gambling, was born in Dallas, Texas in 1915 and was affectionately called “the first lady of gambling.” She exhibited a natural talent for entertaining others during her childhood, and her marriage to Warren Bayley, the owner of one of the largest hotel chains in California, eventually led to the opening of a casino in Las Vegas. As the first woman to own a casino in Las Vegas, she helped create the famous Vegas strip.
Another famous woman gambler was Barbara Stanwyck, who played two different roles fifteen years apart in The Lady Gambles (1949) and Gambling Lady (1934). Stanwyck’s portrayal of the female gambler was largely unfeminine until her era. In these films, she portrays two different types of characters: a card shark and a compulsive gambler.
Another example of a woman who earned fame in the gambling world is Vanessa Selbst. This law graduate, from Yale University, has won more than $10 million in live tournaments. Her three bracelets from the World Series of Poker make her one of the highest-earning female players in history. While she has now left the world of poker to pursue other goals, she hopes to return at some point in the future.
