Craps

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Games that use dice and the dice themselves date all the way back to the Middle Eastern Crusades, but current craps is approximately one hundred years old. Current craps formed from the old English game called Hazard. No one knows for certain the birth of the game, but Hazard is believed to have been invented by the Anglo, Sir William of Tyre, in the 12th century. It is believed that Sir William’s knights enjoyed Hazard through a blockade on the fortification Hazarth in 1125 AD. The name Hazard was derived from the castle’s name.

Early French settlers brought the game Hazard to Acadia. In the 18th century, when driven away by the British, the French relocated south and found refuge in the south of Louisiana where they a while later became known as Cajuns. When they left Acadia, they brought their favorite game, Hazard, along. The Cajuns simplified the game and made it fair mathematically. It is said that the Cajuns changed the name to craps, which was acquired from the term for the non-winning toss of two in the game of Hazard, referred to as "crabs."

From Louisiana, the game migrated to the Mississippi river boats and across the country. A few consider the dice builder John H. Winn as the father of modern craps. In the early 1900s, Winn created the modern craps setup. He put in place the Do not Pass line so players could bet on the dice to lose. At another time, he developed the boxes for Place wagers and added the Big 6, Big 8, and Hardways.