Master Craps – Pointers and Schemes: The History of Craps
Be cunning, play smart, and become versed in craps the proper way!
Games that use dice and the dice themselves goes back to the Crusades, but modern craps is approximately a century old. Modern craps come about from the ancient Anglo game referred to as Hazard. Nobody absolutely knows the origin of the game, but Hazard is said to have been created by the Englishman, Sir William of Tyre, in the 12th century. It is presumed that Sir William’s horsemen played Hazard through a blockade on the fortress Hazarth in 1125 AD. The name Hazard was derived from the fortification’s name.
Early French settlers imported the game Hazard to Nova Scotia. In the 1700s, when driven away by the English, the French headed down south and found safety in southern Louisiana where they a while later became known as Cajuns. When they left Acadia, they brought their preferred game, Hazard, with them. The Cajuns broke down the game and made it fair mathematically. It is said that the Cajuns adjusted the title to craps, which was acquired from the term for the losing toss of 2 in the game of Hazard, known as "crabs."
From Louisiana, the game migrated to the Mississippi riverboats and across the country. A few consider the dice builder John H. Winn as the creator of modern craps. In 1907, Winn assembled the current craps setup. He created the Do not Pass line so gamblers can wager on the dice to not win. At another time, he designed the boxes for Place bets and added the Big 6, Big 8, and Hardways.
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