Be cunning, play smart, and become versed in craps the right way!
Games that use dice and the dice themselves date back to the Crusades, but current craps is only about a century old. Current craps formed from the 12th Century Anglo game referred to as Hazard. Nobody absolutely knows the beginnings of the game, but Hazard is said to have been invented by the Anglo, Sir William of Tyre, sometime in the 12th century. It is supposed that Sir William’s paladins bet on Hazard during a blockade on the citadel Hazarth in 1125 AD. The title Hazard was derived from the fortress’s name.
Early French settlers imported the game Hazard to Canada. In the 18th century, when exiled by the English, the French moved down south and found sanctuary in the south of Louisiana where they at a later time became known as Cajuns. When they departed Acadia, they brought their preferred game, Hazard, with them. The Cajuns modernized the game and made it more mathematically fair. It is believed that the Cajuns changed the name to craps, which is derived from the name of the bad luck toss of two in the game of Hazard, recognized as "crabs."
From Louisiana, the game moved to the Mississippi riverboats and across the nation. Many acknowledge the dice builder John H. Winn as the father of modern craps. In the early 1900s, Winn designed the modern craps layout. He added the Don’t Pass line so gamblers can bet on the dice to not win. Later, he developed the spaces for Place bets and added the Big 6, Big 8, and Hardways.