Craps

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Dice and dice games go back to the Middle Eastern Crusades, but current craps is only about one hundred years old. Modern day craps developed from the archaic English game named Hazard. No one is certain of the origin of the game, but Hazard is considered to have been created by the British man, Sir William of Tyre, in the 12th century. It’s rumored that Sir William’s knights gambled on Hazard during a siege on the fortification Hazarth in 1125 AD. The title Hazard was derived from the fortification’s name.

Early French colonizers imported the game Hazard to French North America (the colony of Acadia, which is now Nova Scotia). In the 18th century, when exiled by the English, the French relocated south and happen upon refuge in southern Louisiana where they eventually became known as Cajuns. When they left Nova Scotia, they brought their preferred game, Hazard, with them. The Cajuns simplified the dice game and developed it to be more statistically attractive. It’s stated that the Cajuns altered the name of the game to craps, which was developed from the term for the non-winning toss of two in the dice game of Hazard, referred to as "crabs."

From Louisiana, the game moved to the Mississippi river boats and all over the union. Many consider the dice maker John H. Winn as the founder of current craps. In the early 1900s, Winn created the modern craps table design. He included the Do not Pass line so gamblers could wager on the shooter to lose. Later, he created the boxes for Place wagers and added the Big 6, Big eight, and Hardways.