Craps Information

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Games that use dice and the dice themselves goes back to the Middle Eastern Crusades, but modern craps is only about 100 years old. Current craps evolved from the ancient English game referred to as Hazard. Nobody absolutely knows the birth of the game, although Hazard is said to have been discovered by the Anglo, Sir William of Tyre, around the twelfth century. It is believed that Sir William’s knights enjoyed Hazard during a siege on the citadel Hazarth in 1125 AD. The title Hazard was derived from the fortress’s name.

Early French colonists imported the game Hazard to Canada. In the 1700s, when displaced by the British, the French relocated down south and discovered refuge in southern Louisiana where they eventually became Cajuns. When they departed Acadia, they brought their preferred game, Hazard, along. The Cajuns broke down the game and made it fair mathematically. It’s believed that the Cajuns altered the title to craps, which was acquired from the term for the bad luck toss of snake-eyes in the game of Hazard, referred to as "crabs."

From Louisiana, the game extended to the Mississippi riverboats and all over the nation. Many think the dice maker John H. Winn as the creator of modern craps. In the early 1900s, Winn built the current craps layout. He put in place the Do not Pass line so gamblers could bet on the dice to lose. At another time, he created the spots for Place bets and added the Big 6, Big 8, and Hardways.