Interesting historical facts you may not be aware of

These are from an old email I was about to delete but thought I would post here for others to consider. Enjoy

During WWII , U.S. airplanes were armed with belts of bullets which they would shoot during dogfights and on strafing runs. These belts were folded into the wing compartments that fed their machine guns. These belts measure27 feet and contained hundreds of rounds of bullets. Often times, the pilots would return from their missions having expended all of their bullets on various targets. They would say, “I gave them the whole nine yards,”meaning they used up all of their ammunition.



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In George Washington's days, there were no cameras. One's image was either sculpted or painted. Some paintings of George Washington showed him standing behind a desk with one arm behind his back while others showed both legs and both arms. Prices charged by painters were not based on how many people were to be painted, but by how many limbs were to be painted. Arms and legs are 'limbs,' therefore painting them would cost the buyer more. Hence the expression, 'Okay, but it'll cost you an arm and a leg.' (Artists know hands and arms are more difficult to paint.)



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As incredible as it sounds, men and women took baths only twice a year (May and October). Women kept their hair covered, while men shaved their heads (because of lice and bugs) and wore wigs. Wealthy men could afford good wigs made from wool. They couldn't wash the wigs, so to clean them they would carve out a loaf of bread, put the wig in the shell, and bake it for 30 minutes. The heat would make the wig big and fluffy, hence the term 'big wig'. Today we often use the term 'here comes the Big Wig' because someone appears to be or is powerful and wealthy.



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In the late 1700's, many houses consisted of a large room with only one chair. Commonly, a long wide board folded down from the wall, and was used for dining. The 'head of the household' always sat in the chair while everyone else ate sitting on the floor. Occasionally a guest, who was usually a man, would be invited to sit in this chair during a meal. To sit in the chair meant you were important and in charge. They called the one sitting in the chair the 'chair man.' Today in business, we use the expression or title 'Chairman' or 'Chairman of the Board.'



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Ladies wore corsets, which would lace up in the front. A proper and dignified woman, as in 'strait laced' wore a tightly tied lace.



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Common entertainment included playing cards. However, there was a tax levied when purchasing playing cards but only applicable to the 'Ace of Spades.' To avoid paying the tax, people would purchase 51 cards instead. Yet, since most games require 52 cards, these people were thought to be stupid or dumb because they weren't 'playing with a full deck.'



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Early politicians required feedback from the public to determine what the people considered important. Since there were no telephones, TV's or radios, the politicians sent their assistants to local taverns, pubs, and bars. They were told to 'go sip some Ale and listen to people's conversations and political concerns Many assistants were dispatched at different times. 'You go sip here' and 'You go sip there.' The two words 'go sip' were eventually combined when referring to the local opinion and, thus we have the term 'gossip.'



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At local taverns, pubs, and bars, people drank from pint and quart-sized containers. A bar maid's job was to keep an eye on the customers and keep the drinks coming. She had to pay close attention and remember who was drinking in 'pints' and who was drinking in 'quarts,' hence the phrase 'minding your 'P's and Q's'.



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In the heyday of sailing ships, all war ships and many freighters carried iron cannons. Those cannons fired round iron cannon balls. It was necessary to keep a good supply near the cannon. However, how to prevent them from rolling about the deck? The best storage method devised was a square-based pyramid with one ball on top, resting on four resting on nine, which rested on sixteen. Thus, a supply of 30 cannon balls could be stacked in a small area right next to the cannon. There was only one problem....how to prevent the bottom layer from sliding or rolling from under the others. The solution was a metal plate called a 'Monkey' with 16 round indentations. However, if this plate were made of iron, the iron balls would quickly rust to it. The solution to the rusting problem was to make 'Brass Monkeys.' Few landlubbers realize that brass contracts much more and much faster than iron when chilled.. Consequently, when the temperature dropped too far, the brass indentations would shrink so much that the iron cannonballs would come right off the monkey; Thus, it was quite literally, 'Cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey.' (All this time, you thought that was an improper expression, didn't you.)

Brass monkey balls, my education feels complete.

a reply to: 727Sky

These are terrific anecdotes and I will be sure to sprinkle them throughout my conversations.

BTW, are any of them actually true?

a reply to: Boomer1947

They all kind of ring true to me, except the one about 'gossip'. I mean, doesn't the Bible talk about gossipers way earlier than this?

a reply to: 727Sky

there is some question as to where the whole nine yards comes from. it was in print for the first time in 1855.

Many of the popular candidates relate to the length of pieces of fabric, or various garments, including Indian saris, Scottish kilts, burial shrouds, or bolts of cloth.[35][36] No single source verifies that any one of those suggestions was the actual origin. However, an article published in Comments on Etymology demonstrates that fabric was routinely sold in standard lengths of nine yards (and other multiples of three yards) during the 1800s and early 1900s.[37] This may explain why so many different types of cloth or garments have been said to have been nine yards long.[38] The phrase "...she has put the whole nine yards into one shirt" appears in 1855.[39]
Origin

that said i remember that it turned out that email / article was a hoax. i can't find anything other than this which i sorely hate to use seeing how bias they are. but so far it's the only source other than the wiki above that goes to the point.

so here it is,

Etymology of 'Little History Lesson' The etymology of the phrases contained in the 'Little History Lesson' article.

a reply to: BernnieJGato

that said i remember that it turned out that email / article was a hoax.

Oh, man; you just peed in the cornflakes!

a reply to: Asktheanimals

my education feels complete.

'Miseducation' might be more appropriate, I fear.

These are internet folktales made up by people with nothing better to do. Take the first phrase invoked by the OP, 'the whole nine yards,' for example.

What, for instance lies behind the phrase the whole nine yards? We know that it comes out of US regional use, and is so far first recorded in 1907. But its origins? Most suggestions involve standards of measurement, from the dimensions of a nun's habit to the capacity of a cement truck and the length of an ammunition clip to that of a hangman's rope. However, few, when checked, actually run to nine yards. It may be no more than the use of nine as a form of mystic number. Your guess, dare I admit, maybe be even better than mine. Source

Also:
The whole nine yards: Nine reader theories for the phrase's origin.

Take your pick, but 'deny ignorance'.

Within the family to mind your Ps and Qs refered to your manners. Pleases and thankyous.... Still, fits both ways..

I'll just add another interesting one....

When you remove your hat for a deceased person wasn't for the 'respectful' thing to do. It comes from when top hats were the common hat to wear and you would remove it so the people behind could see the spectacle of a public execution.

a reply to: 727Sky

I thought a brass monkey was more like a band of brass that worked like the triangle rack for pool balls. The band seems more reasonable because it used less metal and would shrink quicker given less metal to cool down.

Related to the wigs, a merkin is a wig for the private area. So why was a store called a mercantile even though they did not all sell merkins?

originally posted by: 727Sky
These are from an old email I was about to delete but thought I would post here for others to consider. Enjoy

The thing with thr number of baths people were taking is amusing!

I don't want to think or even imagine what kind of smell those people had...

Anyone tried it?

a reply to: Revinder

If I had to bet I would assume there were some sneaky bathing going on !?

originally posted by: 727Sky
a reply to: Revinder

If I had to bet I would assume there were some sneaky bathing going on !?

Probably! After all it would have been unbearable to only take two baths a year although some people may have been happy with the mud and smell...

a reply to: 727Sky

I remember some kids back in school who were smelling really badly and looks like they were following the same system having maybe 2 or 3 baths per year

Love those 👍🏼

Happy as a sand boy came from the boys/young men that delivered the sawdust to the taverns used to get paid in beer, so they were basically drunk by the end of each day and happy as a sand boy

originally posted by: Revinder
a reply to: 727Sky

I remember some kids back in school who were smelling really badly and looks like they were following the same system having maybe 2 or 3 baths per year

Being from a poor family in the north of England in the 70's it was common practice to only have a bath once a week on a Sunday. The rest of the week it was a quick strip wash.... and it was quick due to not having the comforts of central heating. Not to mention having an outside toilet.

originally posted by: wtbengineer
a reply to: Boomer1947

They all kind of ring true to me, except the one about 'gossip'. I mean, doesn't the Bible talk about gossipers way earlier than this?

The practice has been around since humans first developed a spoken language. The actual word “gossip” was just a translation. I highly doubt “gossip” is Aramaic…

a reply to: FloridaManMatty

...Aramaic

Good grief.

Which parts of the Bible do you imagine were wrritten in Aramaic?

Out of 31,102 verses in the Bible, 268 were written in Aramaic.

This thread is a clownfest.

Some interesting Guidance to our peculiar words and phrases we Brits use and their historical etymology.

May be useful for our American cousins visiting London:

www.siliconglen.scot...

Eg: "One of the most delightful ways to spend an afternoon in Oxford or Cambridge is gliding gently down the river in one of their flat-bottomed boats, which you propel using a long pole. This is known as "cottaging". Many of the boats (called "yer-i-nals") are privately owned by the colleges, but there are some places that rent them to the public by the hour. Just tell a professor or policeman that you are interested in doing some cottaging and would like to know where the public yerinals are"

The one about bathing reminds me of the movie "Seven Brides for Seven Brothers" my mom liked watching that when I was a kid. And the family kinda resembled mine. But I have 5 brothers, so there were six of us not seven. It was funny how close it seemed we all were in personality too.



I took a shower every morning but hardly ever seen my dad. He would, but he usually just wash with a washcloth at the sink, his face and neck and shave. Never understood why. Guess that's the way he grew up doing it. Interesting when I was out visiting him some months back he was reminiscing about his childhood, he's in his 70's now. Talked about a lot of stuff that has gone the way of the dodo-bird. Like the milk man delivering milk. He said he was in charge of burning their trash once a week, little things like that.