Craps

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Dice and dice games date back to the Middle Eastern Crusades, but current craps is approximately one hundred years old. Modern craps formed from the old English game referred to as Hazard. No one absolutely knows the origin of the game, but Hazard is believed to have been made up by the Englishman, Sir William of Tyre, in the 12th century. It’s presumed that Sir William’s paladins enjoyed Hazard during a blockade on the fortress Hazarth in 1125 AD. The name Hazard was derived from the fortification’s name.

Early French settlers brought the game Hazard to Nova Scotia. In the 1700s, when exiled by the English, the French relocated down south and settled in the south of Louisiana where they at a later time became Cajuns. When they were driven out of Acadia, they took their best-loved game, Hazard, with them. The Cajuns simplified the game and made it fair mathematically. It’s said that the Cajuns adjusted the title to craps, which was acquired from the term for the bad luck throw of snake-eyes in the game of Hazard, known as "crabs."

From Louisiana, the game extended to the Mississippi scows and across the country. A good many think the dice maker John H. Winn as the founder of current craps. In the early 1900s, Winn created the modern craps setup. He appended the Don’t Pass line so gamblers could bet on the dice to lose. Afterwords, he established the spaces for Place wagers and added the Big 6, Big 8, and Hardways.