Dice and dice games go back to the Crusades, but modern day craps is only about one hundred years old. Modern day craps flourished from the very old English game named Hazard. No one knows for sure the beginnings of the game, but Hazard is considered to have been designed by the British man, Sir William of Tyre, in the 1300’s. It is presumed that Sir William’s knights gambled on Hazard for the duration of a blockade on the fortress Hazarth in 1125 AD. The title Hazard was derived from the fortification’s name.
Early French colonizers brought the dice game Hazard to Canada (the area of Acadia, which is Nova Scotia today). In the 1700s, when driven away by the British, the French relocated south and found safety in southern Louisiana where they eventually became Cajuns. When they were driven out of Nova Scotia, they took their favorite game, Hazard, with them. The Cajuns streamlined the dice game and made it more statistically honest. It’s said that the Cajuns amended the name to craps, which was derived from the term for the losing roll of two in the game of Hazard, known as "crabs."
From Louisiana, the game moved to the Mississippi river boats and throughout the country. Many see the die maker John H. Winn as the father of modern day craps. In 1907, Winn developed the current craps layout. He included the Do not Pass line so individuals could bet on the shooter to lose. Later, he developed the boxes for Place wagers and added the Big 6, Big eight, and Hardways.