Become Versed in Craps – Tips and Tactics: The Background of Craps
Be cunning, play smart, and become versed in craps the correct way!
Games that use dice and the dice themselves date back to the Crusades, but modern craps is approximately a century old. Modern craps come about from the old English game called Hazard. No one absolutely knows the ancestry of the game, although Hazard is believed to have been discovered by the Englishman, Sir William of Tyre, in the 12th century. It is believed that Sir William’s horsemen played Hazard during a blockade on the castle Hazarth in 1125 AD. The name Hazard was acquired from the castle’s name.
Early French colonists imported the game Hazard to Acadia. In the 18th century, when expelled by the English, the French relocated down south and located sanctuary in southern Louisiana where they at a later time became Cajuns. When they were driven out of Acadia, they brought their preferred game, Hazard, along. The Cajuns modernized the game and made it mathematically fair. It’s believed that the Cajuns changed the name to craps, which was derived from the name of the non-winning throw of 2 in the game of Hazard, referred to as "crabs."
From Louisiana, the game extended to the Mississippi riverboats and across the nation. A good many think the dice builder John H. Winn as the creator of current craps. In 1907, Winn assembled the modern craps layout. He added the Don’t Pass line so players can wager on the dice to lose. Later, he created the boxes for Place bets and put in place the Big 6, Big 8, and Hardways.