What is "powder monkey"

Powder \Pow"der\, n. [OE. poudre, pouldre, F. poudre, OF. also poldre, puldre, L. pulvis, pulveris: cf. pollen fine flour, mill dust, E. pollen. Cf. Polverine, Pulverize.]

1. The fine particles to which any dry substance is reduced by pounding, grinding, or triturating, or into which it falls by decay; dust.

   Grind their bones to powder small.
   --Shak.

2. An explosive mixture used in gunnery, blasting, etc.; gunpowder. See Gunpowder.

   Atlas powder, Baking powder, etc. See under Atlas, Baking, etc.

   Powder down (Zo["o]l.), the peculiar dust, or exfoliation, of powder-down feathers.

   Powder-down feather (Zo["o]l.), one of a peculiar kind of modified feathers which sometimes form patches on certain parts of some birds. They have a greasy texture and a scaly exfoliation.

   Powder-down patch (Zo["o]l.), a tuft or patch of powder-down feathers.

   Powder hose, a tube of strong linen, about an inch in diameter, filled with powder and used in firing mines.
   --Farrow.

   Powder hoy (Naut.), a vessel specially fitted to carry powder for the supply of war ships. They are usually painted red and carry a red flag.

   Powder magazine, or Powder room. See Magazine, 2.

   Powder mine, a mine exploded by gunpowder. See Mine.

   Powder monkey (Naut.), a boy formerly employed on war vessels to carry powder; a powder boy.

   Powder post. See Dry rot, under Dry.

   Powder puff. See Puff, n.

n. 1 (context informal English) An explosives expert. A person who sets explosives. 2 (context nautical English) The persons employed to carry gun powder from the ship's magazine to the gun deck during a battle; in the 18th century Royal British and U. S. Navies, this task (also carrying water) during battles became a permanent nickname for the ship's cabin boys and apprentice seamen. 3 (context skiing snowboarding informal English) A skier or snowboarder who avidly seeks out the “powder” (light, dry, fluffy snow).

n. someone who carries explosives (as from the magazine to the guns on board a warship)

A powder boy or powder monkey manned naval artillery guns as a member of a warship's crew, primarily during the Age of Sail. His chief role was to ferry gunpowder from the powder magazine in the ship's hold to the artillery pieces, either in bulk or as cartridges, to minimize the risk of fires and explosions. The function was usually fulfilled by boy seamen 12 to 14 years of age. Powder monkeys were usually boys or young teens selected for the job for their speed and height — they were short and could move more easily in the limited space between decks and would also be hidden behind the ship's gunwale, keeping them from being shot by enemy ships' sharp shooters. Some women and older men also worked as powder monkeys.

The Royal Navy first began using the term "powder monkey" in the 17th century. The term was later used, and continues to be used in some countries, to signify a skilled technician or engineer who engages in blasting work, such as in the mining or demolition industries. In such industries, a "powder monkey" is also sometimes referred to as a "blaster".

Powder monkeys was the nickname given to young men during the Age of Sail that carried bags of gunpowder from the powder magazine in the ship's hold to the gun crews. It may also refer to:

• Powder Monkey, a 1973 novel by Kenneth Bulmer as Adam Hardy
• Powder Monkey, a 2006 novel by Paul Dowswell and set in the British Navy of 1800
• The Powder Monkey, a 1906 novel by George Manville Fenn
• From Powder Monkey to Admiral, written by William Henry Giles Kingston, first published in 1879 and reprinted as recently as 2007
• Powder Monkeys, an Australian punk band