Dice and dice games date back to the Middle Eastern Crusades, but modern day craps is only about one hundred years old. Modern craps flourished from the ancient English game known as Hazard. No one is certain of the origin of the game, but Hazard is considered to have been developed by the Englishman, Sir William of Tyre, in the 12th century. It is believed that Sir William’s soldiers gambled on Hazard during a siege on the fortress Hazarth in 1125 AD. The title Hazard was developed from the castle’s name.
Early French colonizers brought the dice game Hazard to Canada (the colony of Acadia, which is Nova Scotia today). In the 1700s, when driven away by the British, the French headed south and happen upon refuge in the south of Louisiana where they a while later became known as Cajuns. When they left Nova Scotia, they took their preferred game, Hazard, with them. The Cajuns simplified the game and made it more mathematically honest. It is stated that the Cajuns altered the name of the game to craps, which was developed from the term for the non-winning toss of two in the game of Hazard, known as "crabs."
From Louisiana, the game migrated to the Mississippi river boats and throughout the territory. Many consider the dice maker John H. Winn as the father of modern craps. In the early 1900s, Winn created the modern craps layout. He added the Don’t Pass line so folks could wager on the dice to lose. Later, he created the areas for Place bets and added the Big 6, Big eight, and Hardways.