Be clever, play cunning, and discover how to play craps the right way!
Games that use dice and the dice themselves goes back to the Middle Eastern Crusades, but modern craps is only about a century old. Current craps developed from the ancient Anglo game called Hazard. Nobody knows for certain the birth of the game, however Hazard is said to have been made up by the Englishman, Sir William of Tyre, in the 12th century. It is presumed that Sir William’s horsemen bet on Hazard during a siege on the fortification Hazarth in 1125 AD. The title Hazard was acquired from the citadel’s name.
Early French colonists brought the game Hazard to Nova Scotia. In the 1700s, when exiled by the English, the French relocated south and discovered refuge in southern Louisiana where they a while later became Cajuns. When they were driven out of Acadia, they brought their favored game, Hazard, along. The Cajuns broke down the game and made it more mathematically fair. It is believed that the Cajuns adjusted the name to craps, which is acquired from the term for the losing throw of snake-eyes in the game of Hazard, known as "crabs."
From Louisiana, the game migrated to the Mississippi scows and across the country. Many acknowledge the dice maker John H. Winn as the father of modern craps. In the early 1900s, Winn assembled the current craps setup. He created the Do not Pass line so players could wager on the dice to not win. Later, he invented the spots for Place wagers and put in place the Big 6, Big 8, and Hardways.