Interesting phrase origins

[spartacus53]

I find it interesting to learn about the origins of commonly used phrases like some that are mentioned below. What are some of the phrase origins that piqued your interest?

Mine are

1- Don't throw out the baby in the bath water

2- Red light district

3- Lock, stock and barrel

4- Hookers

5- Sideburns

 

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[Mighty AP]

You gonna leave us hangin Spart?? I know where #1, #4 & #5 came from but not sure about 2 & 3.

#1 People bathed once a week & the entire family took turns with the same water. By the time the baby (who was usualy last) got in the tub the water was black & very dirty, thus your baby could be in the bath when you dumped the water & wouldnt know it.

#4 Civil war era........ Union General Hooker arranged for a large group of prostitutes to "service" his troops, they became known as "Hookers".

#5 Civil war era........Another general Burnside had large sideburns, it is thought that this is where the term orriginated.

Am I right or am I horribly wrong Spart? Curious bout the other two.......

 

[WishfulThinker]

http://www.phrases.org.uk/meanings

 

[spartacus53]

red light district came from the fact that the lantern on a train was red and it was a signal to the ladies that the train was in.

Close but no apple..

Red light district actually came from the railroad workers that would leave their lanterns outside the room, showing that it was in use with a lady of the night.

Lock, stock and barrel cam from the gunsmiths, a term describing all you needed for a hand gun.

 

[jeff of pa]

got this in an email yesterday

debated because some of the language may offend
if taken out of context

There is an old Hotel/Pub in Marble Arch, London which used to have gallows
adjacent. Prisoners were taken to the gallows (after a fair trial of course)
to be hung. The horse drawn dray, carting the prisoner was accompanied by an
armed guard, who would stop the dray outside the pub and ask the prisoner if
he would like ''ONE LAST DRINK''.
If he said YES it was referred to as ONE FOR THE ROAD
If he declined, that prisoner was ON THE WAGON
So there you go. More bleeding history.
They used to use urine to tan animal skins, so families used to all pee in a
pot & then once a day it was taken & sold to the tannery. If you had to do
this to survive you were "Piss Poor". But worse than that were the really poor
folk who couldnt even afford to buy a pot they "Didnt have a pot to Piss in"
& were the lowest of the low.
The next time you are washing your hands and complain because the water
temperature isn't just how you like it, think about how things used to be.
Here are some facts about the 1500s:
Most people got married in June because they took their yearly bath in May,
and they still smelled pretty good by June. However, since they were starting
to smell brides carried a bouquet of flowers to hide the body odour. Hence the
custom today of carrying a bouquet when getting married.
Baths consisted of a big tub filled with hot water. The man of the house had
the privilege of the nice clean water, then all the other sons and men, then
the women and finally the children. Last of all the babies. By then the water
was so dirty you could actually lose someone in it. Hence the saying, "Don't
throw the baby out with the Bath water!"
Houses had thatched roofs, thick straw piled high, with no wood underneath. It
was the only place for animals to get warm, so all the cats and other small
animals (mice, bugs) lived in the roof. When it rained it became slippery and
sometimes the animals would slip and fall off the roof. Hence the saying "It's
raining cats and dogs."
There was nothing to stop things from falling into the house. This posed a
real problem in the bedroom where bugs and other droppings could mess up your
nice clean bed. Hence, a bed with big posts and a sheet hung over the top
afforded some protection. That's how canopy beds came into existence.
The floor was dirt. Only the wealthy had something other than dirt. Hence the
saying, "Dirt Poor." The wealthy had slate floors that would get slippery in
the winter when wet, so they spread thresh (straw) on floor to help keep their
footing. As the winter wore on, they added more thresh until, when you opened
the door, it would all start slipping outside. A piece of wood was placed in
the entrance-way.. Hence: a thresh hold. (Getting quite an education, aren't
you?)
In those old days, they cooked in the kitchen with a big kettle that always
hung over the fire. Every day they lit the fire and added things to the pot.
They ate mostly vegetables and did not get much meat. They would eat the stew
for dinner, leaving leftovers in the pot to get cold overnight and then start
over the next day. Sometimes stew had food in it that had been there for quite
a while. Hence the rhyme: ''Peas porridge hot, peas porridge cold, peas
porridge in the pot nine days old''.
Sometimes they could obtain pork, which made them feel quite special. When
visitors came over, they would hang up their bacon to show off. It was a sign
of wealth that a man could, "Bring home the Bacon." They would cut off a
little to share with guests and would all sit around talking and ''Chew the
fat''.
Those with money had plates made of pewter. Food with high acid content caused
some of the lead to leach onto the food, causing lead poisoning & death. This
happened most often with tomatoes, so for the next 400 years or so, tomatoes
were considered poisonous.
Bread was divided according to status. Workers got the burnt bottom of the
loaf, the family got the middle, and guests got the top, or ''The Upper
Crust''.
Lead cups were used to drink ale or whisky. The combination would sometimes
knock the imbibers out for a couple of days. Someone walking along the road
would take them for dead and prepare them for burial. They were laid out on
the kitchen table for a couple of days and the family would gather around and
eat and drink and wait and see if they would wake up. Hence the custom
of ''Holding a Wake''.
England is old and small and the local folks started running out of places to
bury people. So they would dig up coffins and would take the bones to a bone-
house, and reuse the grave. When reopening these coffins, 1 out of 25 coffins
were found to have scratch marks on the inside and they realized they had been
burying people alive. So they would tie a string on the wrist of the corpse,
lead it through the coffin and up through the ground and tie it to a bell.
Someone would have to sit out in the graveyard all night (the graveyard
shift.) to listen for the bell; thus, someone could be, ''Saved by the Bell ''
or was considered a ''Dead Ringer''
And that's the truth...Now, whoever said History was boring ! ! !
So . . . get out there and educate someone! ~~~ Share these facts with a
friend like I just did! ! !

 

[Mighty AP]

LOL! Very nice history lesson Jeff!!!

 

[spartacus53]

Well done Jeff I knew several of those, but several were also new to me and I find this most interesting. Here is another one I just remembered.

Sleep tight and don't let the bedbugs bite.

This came into being in the early 1700's when of course we didn't have bed springs. A mattress was held in place by ropes that would have to be pulled taut so as not to sink towards the ground inviting those little critters to feast on you.

I hope to see more listed here, so please feel free to add to them

 

[spartacus53]

http://www.phrases.org.uk/meanings

Thanks, that is an interesting website

 

[truckinbutch]

This is a great thread ! Hope folks keep adding . I didn't know the hide tanning origin of part of Jeff's post . Used both expressions all my life and that gave them new meaning .

 

[BigDan]

I learned this recently watching the history channel

"Don't yank my chain"

Cole miners in the tunnels would use a coal cart specially made to be a rolling "johnny" for relief of that nature. They would place a small length of chain under the wheels to prevent it from rolling while in use. Seems it was not uncommon a prank to push the coal car while someone was sitting on it.

That's what the show said, anyway, and I'm not yanking your chain!

Big Dan