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Bean hooks

Posted by Brian from Shawnee on January 13, 2005

In Reply to: Consider this? posted by SR on January 13, 2005

: : : : Shoot the bucket out of the bean hook
: : : : cumes from Joliet IL in the 1930s or 1940s
: : : : Anyone know the meaning?

: : :
: : : I've never heard it. But it is very intriguing. Could bean hook refer to something to hold a bean pot over a fire?

: : Could it be 'beam hook', ie a hook from a beam from which a bucket is suspended?

: Slang terms here! The head is sometimes called the 'bean,' and the nose is called the 'hook.' As with hitting a spittoon with a gob from the mouth, to blow through the nose (hook) and hit the bucket (spittoon). It is a stretch, I know, but could it be?

: SR

Perhaps the original poster will return and give us some context. Joliet, Illinois is famous for its State Prison, so maybe this is some kind of prison slang. And as for "bean hook", a Google search turns up multiple meanings. It could be a gardening implement, a fishing hook, or a 19th century police handcuff design.

And if you have never heard of a Bean Hook you're not alone. As late as 1991 nobody at the department of revenue for the State of Illinois knew what one was, either, so in answer to a citizen's inquiry they had no idea if they were elligible for a tax exemption as a Farm Implement: "We do not know what bean hooks are". It just struck me as funny coming from a bureaucracy.

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