Jack of the dust
Jack of the dust is an obsolete enlisted rating of the United States Navy and was used in the Navy Supply Corps. The modern U.S. Navy equivalent is Culinary specialist.[1]
The term has its origin in the Royal Navy of the early 1800s when ship's stewards or purser's assistants[2] were known as "Jack-in-the-dust", referring to the dusty atmosphere in the bread storeroom (called the "bread-room") created by issuing quantities of flour and dried biscuit.[3][4]
Other names used for Jack of the dust were "Breadroom Jack", "Dusty Boy", "Dips", and "Jack Dusty".[5]
The US naval rating was discontinued in the late 19th century, but the term survived as a formal title until World War II. As of 2002 "Jack of the dust" was still in use on some ships as an informal title for a culinary specialist in charge of the canned goods storeroom.[6]
See also
- Culinary specialist (United States Navy) – United States Navy occupational rating
- Provisioning of USS Constitution - Example of typical early 19th century Navy provisions
References
- ↑ U.S. Naval Institute Staff. "A Brief List of Old, Obscure and Obsolete U.S. Navy Jobs". usni.org. U.S. Naval Institute. Retrieved 15 May 2026.
In another holdover from the Royal Navy, the sailor who assisted the cook by breaking out provisions was known as Dusty, or Jack of the Dust, because he was often covered in flour from working in a bread room. The rating was established in the U.S. Navy in 1876 and referred to the storeroom keeper. Jack of the dust ceased being an official rating in 1893, but the name lives on in the modern Navy as an informal title given to the culinary specialist in charge of canned goods or the sailors assigned to food-service duty.
- ↑ Dean King; John B. Hattendorf (20 March 2012). A Sea of Words: A Lexicon and Companion to the Complete Seafaring Tales of Patrick O'Brian. Open Road Media. pp. 307–. ISBN 978-1-4532-3830-1.
- ↑ Janet MacDonald (August 2006). Feeding Nelson's Navy: The True Story of Food at Sea in the Georgian Era. Chatham. pp. 100–. ISBN 978-1-86176-288-7.
- ↑ Charles H. Bodder (pseud.) (1919). Under Fire with Farragut: The Signal Boy's Story. Signal boy publications. pp. 12–.
- ↑ Frank Lanier (9 June 2014). Jack Tar and the Baboon Watch: A Guide to Curious Nautical Knowledge for Landlubbers and Sea Lawyers Alike. McGraw Hill Professional. ISBN 978-0-07-182401-9.
- ↑ Vaughn, Fireman (SW/AW) Vernishia (8 April 2002). "A Day of Eating on Wasp Starts With the Jack Of the Dust". navy.mil. U.S. Navy. Archived from the original on 2 April 2015. Retrieved 2 March 2015.