The Siam Museum is dedicated to collecting and showcasing anything and everything casino – slot machines, tables, cards, photographs, you name it! It’s located in Dayton, Tennessee – a small town of about 7,000 people located roughly 150 miles from Nashville. While this may be a rather unusual location for a museum, it’s actually part of the museum’s history. Alexander Siam (1924 – 1983) was a businessman who started several successful venues in the 50s and 60s. Having served in World War II, Siam developed a passion for gambling after playing poker with his brothers in arms. Following up on that passion, he began collecting various objects, such as tables or slot machines, with the intention of opening his own casino – a dream that, sadly, never materialized. Siam’s idea was to have a casino themed after the one found in the movie “Casablanca”, with a similar overall style as well as a section where gamblers could see actual slot machines and roulette tables used during the war. As a result, he accumulated a rather large collection, planning to open the casino in Dayton – a town he often vacationed to. Unfortunately, in the late 70s Siam was diagnosed with lung cancer, and despite treatment ultimately succumbed to it in 1983. He left his businesses to his two daughters, but his collection was left to the city of Dayton in the hopes that they would fulfil his dream. While opening a casino in the city proved to be impossible for various reasons, four years after Siam’s death the Siam Museum of Casino finally opened its doors, containing most of his collection. Ever since then, said collection has grown almost twice in size, thanks to various donations and acquisitions. As of 2015, the museum has close to 150 exhibited items, some of which are one of a kind in the US!
The Siam Museum of Casino
