Craps

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Games that use dice and the dice themselves goes all the way back to the Crusades, but modern craps is just about a century old. Current craps developed from the old English game called Hazard. Nobody knows for sure the ancestry of the game, however Hazard is believed to have been made up by the Anglo, Sir William of Tyre, around the twelfth century. It is believed that Sir William’s soldiers enjoyed Hazard amid a blockade on the castle Hazarth in 1125 AD. The title Hazard was derived from the fortress’s name.

Early French colonists imported the game Hazard to Canada. In the 18th century, when banished by the British, the French relocated south and found refuge in southern Louisiana where they at a later time became Cajuns. When they fled Acadia, they brought their favorite game, Hazard, along. The Cajuns broke down the game and made it more mathematically fair. It’s believed that the Cajuns adjusted the name to craps, which is derived from the name of the bad luck throw of two in the game of Hazard, referred to as "crabs."

From Louisiana, the game extended to the Mississippi river boats and throughout the nation. A few acknowledge the dice maker John H. Winn as the founder of modern craps. In 1907, Winn assembled the modern craps layout. He put in place the Don’t Pass line so players could wager on the dice to not win. At another time, he created the spots for Place bets and put in place the Big 6, Big 8, and Hardways.