The History of Casino Craps

Modern day casino craps can be traced right back to the 12th century which makes it one of the oldest casino games. Craps originates from a game called Hazard which was first documented being played by the crusaders in 1125 while laying siege to a castle called Hazarth.

The game of Hazard was very popular in England during the 17th and 18th centuries and started to catch on in the rest of Europe as time went on. The French were particular fans of the game and there is speculation that the modern name came from the French word 'crapaud' (meaning "toad").

The first record appearing of the game in the USA is credited to a Louisiana man called Bernard Xavier Philippe de Marigny de Mandeville although there is some debate as the whether it was introduced by the British who arrived on the Mayflower.

Regardless the games introduction to the United States was the next stage of the game development in to what we have today. In it's early days the game was played on the Mississippi riverboats where it was simplified by a dice maker called John H Winn.

John H Winn is credited with the further development of the game turning the age old game of Hazard into the modern day game of craps. His rule changes included the ability to bet with or against the shooter. This was the initial version of Bank Craps which is what you have in casinos today.

The rules for crap games have not changed much over recent years with the exception of bigger and bigger odds bets (Some casinos now offer 100X odds) and the occasional side bet being added.

The latest move in the craps world has been to online play. Internet casinos offered crap games as early as 1994 and the game has grown online ever since. Obviously there are some differences in that you are rolling virtual dice but the games basics remain the same online and offline.