Craps

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Dice and dice games date back to the Middle Eastern Crusades, but modern craps is just about 100 years old. Current craps formed from the old English game referred to as Hazard. Nobody knows for sure the ancestry of the game, but Hazard is said to have been made up by the Anglo, Sir William of Tyre, around the 12th century. It’s believed that Sir William’s soldiers bet on Hazard amid a blockade on the fortress Hazarth in 1125 AD. The name Hazard was derived from the fortification’s name.

Early French colonists brought the game Hazard to Acadia. In the 18th century, when banished by the British, the French headed down south and found safety in the south of Louisiana where they at a later time became known as Cajuns. When they were driven out of Acadia, they brought their favored game, Hazard, with them. The Cajuns simplified the game and made it mathematically fair. It is believed that the Cajuns changed the title to craps, which is acquired from the term for the losing toss of two in the game of Hazard, referred to as "crabs."

From Louisiana, the game extended to the Mississippi riverboats and across the nation. Many think the dice maker John H. Winn as the father of current craps. In 1907, Winn designed the current craps setup. He put in place the Don’t Pass line so gamblers can bet on the dice to not win. Afterwords, he designed the boxes for Place wagers and added the Big 6, Big 8, and Hardways.