Craps Information

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Games that use dice and the dice themselves date back to the Crusades, but modern craps is approximately a century old. Current craps come about from the 12th Century English game called Hazard. Nobody knows for sure the birth of the game, although Hazard is said to have been created by the Anglo, Sir William of Tyre, sometime in the 12th century. It’s presumed that Sir William’s paladins wagered on Hazard during a blockade on the fortress Hazarth in 1125 AD. The title Hazard was derived from the citadel’s name.

Early French settlers brought the game Hazard to Canada. In the 18th century, when banished by the English, the French relocated south and found safety in the south of Louisiana where they a while later became known as Cajuns. When they were driven out of Acadia, they took their favored game, Hazard, with them. The Cajuns broke down the game and made it fair mathematically. It is said that the Cajuns changed the title to craps, which is gotten from the name of the bad luck throw of snake-eyes in the game of Hazard, recognized as "crabs."

From Louisiana, the game extended to the Mississippi riverboats and across the nation. A few consider the dice maker John H. Winn as the father of modern craps. In 1907, Winn designed the current craps setup. He put in place the Do not Pass line so players could wager on the dice to not win. At another time, he created the spots for Place bets and added the Big 6, Big 8, and Hardways.