Be smart, play smart, and learn how to play craps the right way!
Games that use dice and the dice themselves goes all the way back to the Crusades, but modern craps is approximately 100 years old. Modern craps developed from the old English game called Hazard. No one knows for sure the birth of the game, however Hazard is said to have been discovered by the Englishman, Sir William of Tyre, in the 12th century. It’s believed that Sir William’s knights gambled on Hazard through a siege on the fortification Hazarth in 1125 AD. The name Hazard was acquired from the fortification’s name.
Early French colonizers brought the game Hazard to Nova Scotia. In the 18th century, when expelled by the English, the French moved down south and settled in southern Louisiana where they eventually became Cajuns. When they left Acadia, they brought their favorite game, Hazard, along. The Cajuns simplified the game and made it more mathematically fair. It’s believed that the Cajuns changed the name to craps, which is acquired from the term for the non-winning throw of two in the game of Hazard, known as "crabs."
From Louisiana, the game moved to the Mississippi scows and all over the country. A good many think the dice builder John H. Winn as the creator of modern craps. In 1907, Winn designed the current craps setup. He put in place the Don’t Pass line so players could wager on the dice to not win. Later, he established the spots for Place wagers and added the Big 6, Big 8, and Hardways.