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Dice and dice games date all the way back to the Crusades, but modern craps is approximately a century old. Modern craps formed from the old English game called Hazard. No one absolutely knows the beginnings of the game, however Hazard is said to have been invented by the Anglo, Sir William of Tyre, sometime in the twelfth century. It’s theorized that Sir William’s soldiers enjoyed Hazard amid a blockade on the fortress Hazarth in 1125 AD. The title Hazard was derived from the citadel’s name.
Early French settlers brought the game Hazard to Canada. In the 1700s, when banished by the British, the French headed south and settled in southern Louisiana where they eventually became Cajuns. When they fled Acadia, they brought their preferred game, Hazard, along. The Cajuns simplified the game and made it more mathematically fair. It is said that the Cajuns changed the name to craps, which is acquired from the term for the losing throw of two in the game of Hazard, known as "crabs."
From Louisiana, the game migrated to the Mississippi scows and all over the country. Most acknowledge the dice builder John H. Winn as the creator of modern craps. In the early 1900s, Winn created the current craps setup. He appended the Do not Pass line so gamblers can wager on the dice to not win. Afterwords, he invented the spots for Place bets and put in place the Big 6, Big 8, and Hardways.