Dice and dice games date back to the Crusades, but current craps is just about one hundred years old. Modern craps flourished from the archaic British game named Hazard. No one knows for sure the beginnings of the game, but Hazard is considered to have been developed by the Englishman, Sir William of Tyre, in the 12th century. It’s believed that Sir William’s soldiers gambled on Hazard during a siege on the castle Hazarth in 1125 AD. The title Hazard was developed from the fortification’s name.
Early French colonists brought the dice game Hazard to French North America (the colony of Acadia, which is Nova Scotia today). In the 1700s, when displaced by the British, the French relocated south and discovered sanctuary in the south of Louisiana where they eventually became known as Cajuns. When they were driven out of Acadia, they took their preferred game, Hazard, with them. The Cajuns streamlined the game and made it more statistically attractive. It’s said that the Cajuns amended the name to craps, which was derived from the term for the losing roll of 2 in the dice game of Hazard, known as "crabs."
From Louisiana, the game extended to the Mississippi river boats and throughout the country. Many think the dice maker John H. Winn as the father of current craps. In 1907, Winn assembled the current craps table design. He included the Do not Pass line so players could bet on the dice to lose. Later, he developed the spaces for Place wagers and added the Big six, Big 8, and Hardways.