1-626-272 - The Print Collector/Heritage Images

Robert C Schenck, US Army general and diplomat, 1874. Schenck (1809-1890) was a general in the Union Army in the American Civil War. In 1871 he was appointed US Minister to the United Kingdom by President Ulysses S Grant. At a reception for Queen Victoria in Somerset, Schenck was persuaded to write down his rules for the game of poker. The game rapidly became popular in Britain, where it was known as Schenck Poker.