 The National Monuments Council asserts that the first casino in Chile was opened in the building in 1906 ; however , historians Antonio Saldías and José Arraño Acevedo have pointed out that it was inaugurated as a de facto casino in the summer of 1917 , after Agustín Ross rented the building to Argentinean businessman Alfredo Master . Saldías also noted that there were casinos in Chile before Agustín Ross 's arrival in Pichilemu , in towns such as Constitución . The casino operated until 1931 , when the Casino de Viña del Mar , the first official casino of Chile , opened ; all others were declared illegal . Ross died in 1925 at age of 82 in Viña del Mar , just months before " one of his greatest " dreams was accomplished : the railway from Palmilla and the local railway station . 
