Become Versed in Craps – Pointers and Plans: The Past of Craps

[ English ]

Be brilliant, play clever, and learn how to play craps the correct way!

Dice and dice games date all the way back to the Middle Eastern Crusades, but current craps is only about a century old. Current craps formed from the old Anglo game referred to as Hazard. Nobody knows for sure the origin of the game, however Hazard is said to have been created by the Englishman, Sir William of Tyre, in the 12th century. It is theorized that Sir William’s paladins played Hazard through a blockade on the fortress Hazarth in 1125 AD. The name Hazard was derived from the castle’s name.

Early French colonizers brought the game Hazard to Nova Scotia. In the 18th century, when banished by the English, the French headed south and located sanctuary in southern Louisiana where they at a later time became known as Cajuns. When they were driven out of Acadia, they took their preferred game, Hazard, with them. The Cajuns streamlined the game and made it mathematically fair. It is said that the Cajuns adjusted the title to craps, which was acquired from the name of the bad luck toss of two in the game of Hazard, referred to as "crabs."

From Louisiana, the game moved to the Mississippi riverboats and throughout the nation. A good many consider the dice maker John H. Winn as the father of current craps. In 1907, Winn created the current craps layout. He appended the Don’t Pass line so gamblers can bet on the dice to lose. Later, he developed the spaces for Place bets and put in place the Big 6, Big 8, and Hardways.

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