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Games that use dice and the dice themselves date back to the Middle Eastern Crusades, but modern craps is just about one hundred years old. Modern craps developed from the ancient English game referred to as Hazard. No one knows for certain the beginnings of the game, although Hazard is believed to have been discovered by the Englishman, Sir William of Tyre, around the twelfth century. It is believed that Sir William’s soldiers wagered on Hazard through a blockade on the citadel Hazarth in 1125 AD. The title Hazard was derived from the citadel’s name.
Early French colonizers imported the game Hazard to Canada. In the 1700s, when driven away by the British, the French relocated south and settled in southern Louisiana where they at a later time became known as Cajuns. When they left Acadia, they brought their favorite game, Hazard, along. The Cajuns broke down the game and made it more mathematically fair. It’s said that the Cajuns adjusted the name to craps, which was gotten from the term for the non-winning throw of 2 in the game of Hazard, referred to as "crabs."
From Louisiana, the game migrated to the Mississippi barges and throughout the country. Many acknowledge the dice builder John H. Winn as the father of modern craps. In 1907, Winn built the modern craps layout. He added the Don’t Pass line so players could wager on the dice to not win. Later, he designed the boxes for Place wagers and put in place the Big 6, Big 8, and Hardways.