terminology and their origins

[NW Mailing List]

To the turnip master and all others interested:

The term "hooter" as we use it for locomotives has long been somewhat
cloaked in mystique and who knows from where.

That brings me to my conundrum query: what is the origin of the word
"trick" as it applies to the railroad and the shift the employee worked.
Yes, we all know the other uses of both of these but WHERE, WHEN and WHY
were they applied to railroad terminology. I have chased down more empty
rabbit holes searching for the origin of "trick", even for the non-railroad
origin but can find nothing, zip, nada.

Since the railroad didn't exist before the 1820's we know it didn't exist
in that environment prior but ....... where and why?

Anyone got any ideas or at least where these may have been first applied to
whatever they were first applied to. I'm sure that we don't have to go back
to Shakespeare for their origins ..... do we?

Bob Cohen
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