Main Page | See live article | Alphabetical index Stewart Holbrook was a lumberjack-turned-writer whose first book was Holy Old Mackinaw: A Natural History of the American Lumberjack (ISBN 1112559892). That book, first published in 1938, includes a Loggers Dictionary which defines some of the jargon of the lumberjack. The following list is excerpted from that and other sources: Barber chair: a tree which splits upward along the grain during falling. Batteau: a type of boat used on river drives in the eastern United States Birling: the game of logrolling Branding ax: a tool used for marking ownership of a log Buck: to cut a tree into lengths after it has been felled Bucker: one who saws trees into logs Bullcook (also known derogatorily as the crumb boss): a boy who performs chores around camp, such as sweeping up the bunkhouse, cutting wood for fuel, filling wood boxes, and feeding the livestock Cayuse: a horse or pony (a Chinook term) Conks: fruiting bodies of fungus in rotting wood Corks: short, sharp spikes set in the soles of shoes Crotch line: a device for loading logs onto railroad cars Crown fire: a forest fire that reaches into the tops of trees Deacon seat: a bench, made from a large log split lengthwise, running the length of a bunkhouse Dehorn: a term for an alcoholic beverage, particularly moonshine, borrowed from the jargon of the Wobblies Donkey: a stationary multiple drum machine, powered by steam until the prevalence of the combustion engine Drag day: the point in the work month when a man can get an advance on his wages Driving pitch: high water suitable from driving logs down a river Duplex: a stationary engine that both assembles (yards) and loads logs Gandy dancer: a pick-and-shovel man Gin pole: a short spar, used for loading and unloading logs Gyppo: contract work (or worker), measured by the inch or bushel for example, or by the mile in the case of a truck driver Hardtack outfit: a company running a logging camp which provides substandard food (derived from the cheap and long-lasting cracker or bread of the same name) Hayburner: a horse Highball: to hurry Hiyu: plenty, large, enough Homeguard: a long-time employee of a company Hoot-nanny: a small device used to hold a crosscut saw while sawing a log from the bottom up Ink slinger: a logging camp timekeeper Iron burner: the camp blacksmith Jagger: a sliver of wire Jerk wire: a line attached to the whistle on a yarding donkey, by which a young man (a punk) blows starting and stopping signals King snipe: the boss of a track-laying crew Klooch: a woman (Chinook) Long logger: a logger working in the fir and redwood country of the Western U.S., where logs were often cut in lengths up to 40 feet Macaroni: sawdust Memaloose: dead, or death (Chinook) Mulligan car: a railroad car where lunch is served Nosebag: a lunch bucket Nosebag show: a camp where the midday meal is taken to the woods in lunch buckets Packing a balloon: carrying one's blankets Packing a card: to be a member of a union, such as the Wobblies Peavey (also known as cant dog): a tool with a sharp point and a movable hook on it, used on a river to create leaverage when moving floating logs Pecker pole: a small tree, often found in the understory of old growth Potlatch: a social gathering (a Chinook term) Pulaski: a thick-handled tool with oval eye used as a combination axe and hoe, named after its inventor Schoolmarm: a log or tree that is forked, stable in river driving because it does not roll easily Short staker (or boomer): a worker who quits after earning a small sum Skidroad: formerly the path over which oxen pulled logs; it came to mean the part of a city where loggers congregate Skookum: strong, stout, brave (Chinook) Snoose: damp snuff or chewing tobacco Snubber: a device for braking sleighs as they descend steep hills Sougan: a heavy woolen blanket Swedish fiddle: a crosscut saw Tillicum: a Chinook term used also by loggers to mean a man, ordinarily a friend Tin pants: waterproof clothing worn by loggers in the rainy Pacific Northwest Tyee logger: from the Chinook term meaning a chief, hence the head of a logging operation This article is from Wikipedia. All text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License.