purser rigged and parish damned

adjective

Having joined the United States Navy, either because of destitution or in order to flee problems on land.

Ask AI about this wordChatGPTClaudePerplexityGoogle AIGrok

Meanings

adjective
  1. obsoleteslangnauticalHaving joined the United States Navy, either because of destitution or in order to flee problems on land.

    “Purser rigged and parish damned,” is the sailor saying in the American Navy, when the tyro first mounts the lined frock and blue jacket, aptly manufactured for him in a State Prison ashore.

    1850, Herman Melville, White-Jacket, page 352

Origin

From purser (“ship mate in charge of accounting for passengers aboard”) + rigged (“fixed”) + parish (“meaning church community ashore”) + damned (“forsaken”).

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

purser rigged and parish damned. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/purser%20rigged%20and%20parish%20damned

MLA

“purser rigged and parish damned.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/purser%20rigged%20and%20parish%20damned. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “purser rigged and parish damned,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/purser%20rigged%20and%20parish%20damned.

Source: purser rigged and parish damned on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.