If you have not read “Illegal Of The Day Illinois 24” you should.
It makes a good case for the chips being Illinois Illegal’s.

The fact that the only known chips were found in a Galveston, Texas antique store that was later destroyed by a hurricane has to play a part in the attribution but we all know the old illegal chips travel the country on the flea market circuit. It is just the way it is. I WANT ONE!

Enough of that:

Texas:

Clock 1 O’clock T-mold

It’s interesting that virtually all of the Taylor Co. chip order cards for sales made in1954 are type-written and have the name of the individual or business typed on them--but no address. As you know, a Taylor chip card with a name but no address is ordinarily thought to be a counter pick-up and therefore a good probability that the chip is from the Chicago area. I saw two order cards from 1954 which had the names of known Texas gamblers on them. The Clock chip was ordered in 1954 by a guy named Paul Harris and is attributed to the Clock Club in Galveston in the TGT.

My note: I have noticed the type written cards in the Taylor records but never made the connection to them being 1954. Suggests there was sanitation of the 1954 records. I did not go through them but at least one of the Texas gamblers mentioned above is Ivy Miller, one of Benny Binion’s guys. Ivy has been in several “Illegal Of The Day” posts.

In fact all Texas orders in the Taylor records of “contacts” have been sanitized. There are none, NADA, zilch. IMO that means they were putting names but no address on chip records but maintained a separate address list of Texas contacts, somewhere away from prying eyes.

There was a gambler living in Galveston in 1954 named Paul L. Harris. He moved to Galveston around 1919 while in his late teens and lived there the rest of his life, dying in 1966 at the age of 63. Harris was busted numerous times for gambling violations. In the late 1930’s early 1940’s he operated the Majestic Hotel (at this time Paul’s brother worked as a bartender at the Turf—part of the Turf enterprises which were operated by the Maceo’s on the 2200 block of Market St).

Busted at the Majestic Feb.1940:

In the early 1940’s Harris started operating out of the Panama Hotel where he ran a news stand and liquor store.

from 1943 (middle initial is wrong):

1943:

1947:

My note: OK, there is no doubt Paul Harris was involved with gambling in Galveston.

No proof Paul was ever in Chicago but the sanitation of the Taylor records suggests he could have been sent the chips.

In 1950 these two chip orders were sent to the Panama Hotel building (which included store front addresses 202, 204, 208, 210, 212; the hotel lobby entrance was 206; Rosenberg=25th).

Interesting and odd similarity in the number of chips ordered for the different color chips: 303, 302.

I need this chip! Cough it up if you have a trader.

Modern Music Co.’s business was coin operated devices. LHM=Louis Hayden Morris

I need this chip! Cough it up if you have a trader.

The JT chip was sent to a well known gambling operator in Galveston at the time named Tripo Pavlovich. Almost a year after the chip order Tripo would commit suicide in his room at the Panama Hotel (he had lived for there for over two decades). The J on the chip probably stands for his long time friend and business partner Jimmie Alexander.

old post card of Panama Hotel; the building still stands (202 on far left, 212 on far right, hotel lobby entrance under porch):

Unfortunately I wasn’t able to find any direct connection between Harris and the Clock Club or what Harris was doing in 1954 other than managing an apartment house in which he also resided. He was associated with businesses at the Panama Hotel at least until 1949, perhaps longer. He was a member of the Eagles Lodge, Aerie 48, in Galveston.

My note: Not much help with the attribution.

The Clock Club was located at 2114 1/2 Market (or Avenue D). The address was in a two story building which also housed the address 2114. For many years these two addresses housed operations run by the Genna brothers: Tony & Vincent. The Genna’s were big slot machine guys in Galveston and were involved with all kinds of coin operated devices.

During the 1940’s and 1950’s 2114 Market was the location of Happy’s News Stand. Hertel lists a chip from there:

My note: I think that is my scan in Ed’s entry on his site. When I got the white HNS chip back in 1999, it was the only one known. No clue if others have been found.

The Clock Club appears to have opened in 1954--the same year as the chip order--and closed down
sometime in 1957 (by Dec.1957 a place called “The Showtime” was there). The Clock Club operated on the second floor and Happy’s on the first. For several years prior to 1954, 2114 1/2 housed the M&M Music Co. which was the Genna’s business front. When the Clock Club took over the address in 1954 the M&M Music Co. moved to 212 Rosenberg—the address in the Panama Hotel where the LHM chips were delivered in 1950.

matchbook:

June 18th 1957, law enforcement visits Genna’s M&M Music, Happy’s News Stand and Clock Club (the
Anthony Fertitta mentioned in the article is the great uncle of the Fertitta brothers of Las Vegas who own Station Casinos and Ultimate Fighting Championship as well as Tillman Fertitta who owns the Golden Nugget in Vegas and Atlantic City).

My note: This PDF was way too large to upload. If you don’t have time to read it, bookmark it. If you collect Galveston chips it is a “MUST READ.” Thanks to David Spragg for uploading and hosting it.

15 page “Orders” against County Clubs published in The Texas City Sun on June 11, 1957.
It is a good read and mentions most involved in Galveston illegal operations. If you collect Galveston illegal’s there is a lot of history here.
http://www.marlowcasinochips.com/links/genetrimble/Clocksymboltexas.pdf

Both cases for Illinois and Texas could be made from the research. As my favorite TV pundit Bill O’Reilly would say, we give you “Both Sides” and “You make the call.”

Conclusion: If I ever get one of the chips I will have to make a decision on where I will attribute it!

Until then I am leaning toward the ??????? attribution.

Special thanks to Doug, Ed, Rick, and our “Friend Of The Hobby.”
The history of our chips is a never ending story. I for one would have it “no other way.”