Be cunning, play clever, and pickup craps the proper way!
Dice and dice games goes all the way back to the Crusades, but current craps is approximately a century old. Modern craps developed from the 12th Century Anglo game referred to as Hazard. No one absolutely knows the origin of the game, however Hazard is said to have been invented by the Englishman, Sir William of Tyre, sometime in the 12th century. It’s presumed that Sir William’s paladins gambled on Hazard amid a siege on the fortification Hazarth in 1125 AD. The title Hazard was derived from the fortress’s name.
Early French settlers brought the game Hazard to Acadia. In the 1700s, when exiled by the British, the French relocated down south and settled in the south of Louisiana where they eventually became known as Cajuns. When they left Acadia, they brought their favorite game, Hazard, with them. The Cajuns modernized the game and made it more mathematically fair. It is said that the Cajuns changed the name to craps, which is gotten from the term for the non-winning toss of snake-eyes in the game of Hazard, referred to as "crabs."
From Louisiana, the game moved to the Mississippi scows and across the country. Many acknowledge the dice builder John H. Winn as the founder of current craps. In 1907, Winn built the modern craps layout. He appended the Don’t Pass line so gamblers could bet on the dice to lose. Later, he developed the boxes for Place wagers and put in place the Big 6, Big 8, and Hardways.