Be smart, play brilliant, and become versed in craps the right way!
Dice and dice games date back to the Middle Eastern Crusades, but modern craps is approximately one hundred years old. Current craps come about from the 12th Century Anglo game called Hazard. No one absolutely knows the birth of the game, but Hazard is said to have been created by the Englishman, Sir William of Tyre, sometime in the 12th century. It’s believed that Sir William’s soldiers gambled on Hazard during a blockade on the fortress Hazarth in 1125 AD. The title Hazard was acquired from the fortification’s name.
Early French colonists brought the game Hazard to Acadia. In the 1700s, when driven away by the English, the French headed down south and found safety in southern Louisiana where they at a later time became Cajuns. When they fled Acadia, they brought their favorite game, Hazard, with them. The Cajuns streamlined the game and made it fair mathematically. It is said that the Cajuns changed the title to craps, which was acquired from the name of the bad luck throw of two in the game of Hazard, referred to as "crabs."
From Louisiana, the game migrated to the Mississippi scows and all over the country. Many think the dice maker John H. Winn as the creator of modern craps. In the early 1900s, Winn assembled the current craps setup. He added the Don’t Pass line so players can bet on the dice to not win. Afterwords, he created the spots for Place wagers and put in place the Big 6, Big 8, and Hardways.