A "Buttload"

Factoid of the day: A commonly used term that most think is fictitious but is actually real!

As one can see on this illustration, there was a barrel size called a "butt". A butt held 126 gallons, thus a "buttload" of any liquid goods is 126 gallons or 477 liters of that item.

I once had a nice cup of tea while waiting out a rain shower in Bishop Auckland, Co. Durham, UK, at a pub named the "Butt & Tun". While placing my order, I had to ask about the origin of the pub's name. The barmaid pointed to a bank of many sized barrels above the bar proper and the largest two barrels were the "butt" and the "tun". She also told me that a "buttload" took its name from the barrel's large dimensions.

So, there you have it, the origin of a "buttload"!