Where does craps come from?

The dice game rattling across every casino floor has a surprisingly long family tree, running from medieval English taverns through French New Orleans to the neon tables of Las Vegas.

Quick answer: Craps descends from Hazard, an English dice game played since the 14th century - Chaucer mentions it. Bernard de Marigny brought the game to New Orleans around 1805 and simplified it, and John H. Winn added the don't pass option and the modern layout around 1907.

From Hazard to New Orleans

The story starts with Hazard, an English dice game played in taverns since at least the 14th century - Geoffrey Chaucer mentions it in The Canterbury Tales. Around 1805, a wealthy Creole named Bernard Xavier Philippe de Marigny de Mandeville brought the game to New Orleans. He simplified Hazard's shifting rules by fixing the main at 7, which is essentially the come-out roll we play today.

John H. Winn and the modern table

Early American craps had a problem: crooked dice. Around 1907, a dice maker named John H. Winn fixed it by introducing the don't pass option, letting players bet with or against the shooter on the same layout. Loaded dice stopped paying off, because the cheat could be beaten from either side. Winn's layout is the direct ancestor of every modern craps table.

The casino era and beyond

Bank craps spread through 20th-century casinos, arriving in Las Vegas in the 1930s, and it was the dominant casino game of the 1940s to 60s. Online craps appeared in the 1990s, and Craps.now adds daily challenges and real-time multiplayer races - with free chips only, so you can enjoy the history without any of the risk. The most famous roll ever? Patricia Demauro held the dice for 154 rolls over 4 hours 18 minutes at the Borgata in 2009.

Play the game history built - Craps

Related questions

Why is it called craps?

Two explanations compete, both from the game's New Orleans days. 'Craps' may come from the French 'crapaud,' meaning toad - a nod to players crouching over street games - or from 'crabs,' the old English name for the losing throw in Hazard, the game craps descends from.

What is Hazard, the dice game?

Hazard is the medieval English dice game that craps descends from, played in taverns since the 14th century and mentioned by Chaucer. You call a 'main' from 5 to 9, then roll: hitting the main wins instantly, 2 or 3 loses, and other totals set a 'chance' you must repeat before the main.

What is street craps?

Street craps is craps with everything stripped away except the dice: just pass or don't pass at even money, using the classic rules - 7 or 11 wins the come-out, 2, 3 or 12 loses, then point before 7. No table, no layout, no props. Pass wins about 49.3% of decisions.