raftsmann.
/ˈrɑːf(t)smən/, /ˈraf(t)smən/, U.S. /ˈræf(t)smən/ A worker on a raft.
ΘΚΠ
society > travel > travel by water > one who travels by water or sea > sailor > types of sailor > [noun] > sailor on raft
raftsman1776
rafter1954
1776 C. Carroll Jrnl. 27 Apr. (1845) 67 A small current begins here, and the raftsmen are not obliged to row.
1821 Sat. Evening Post (Philadelphia) 6 Oct. 4/1 A raftsman, who had drank a little too freely, fell from a part of the raft where he was employed, and was near drowning.
1883 ‘Ouida’ Wanda I. 13 She wished..he should grow up a raftsman, or a fisherman.
1917 H. Garland Son of Middle Border ii. 10 My father, who had been a raftsman and timber cruiser and pilot ever since his coming west, was deeply skilled with axe and steering oars.
1944 B. A. Botkin Treasury Amer. Folklore i. 9 Some went to work on the steamboats, others became raftsmen.
1992 J. M. Bumsted Peoples of Canada v. 150 A contingent of 367 men, mostly French-Canadian raftsmen but also including a few Caughnawaga Indians, participated in the relief expedition.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, June 2008; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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