How SHIT came about
Posted on September 15, 2003 in LifeExciting Historical information you need to know about shipping Manure:
In the 16th and 17th centuries, everything had to be transported by
ship.. It was also before commercial fertilizer's invention, so large
shipments of manure were common. It was shipped dry, because in dry form
it weighed a lot less than when wet, but once water (at sea) hit it, it
not only became heavier, but the process of fermentation began again, of
which a by-product is methane gas.
As the stuff was stored below decks in bundles you can see what could
(and did) happen. Methane began to build up below decks and the first
time someone came below at night with a lantern, BOOOOM! Several ships
were destroyed in this manner before it was determined just what was
happening.
After that, the bundles of manure were always stamped with the term
"Ship High In Transit" on them which meant for the sailors to stow it
high enough off the lower decks so that any water that came into the
hold would not touch this volatile cargo and start the production of
methane.
Thus evolved the term "S.H.I.T," which has come down through the
centuries and is in use to this very day.

RSS (2.0)
Previous Comments
S.H.I.T. very interesting!
I did not know it was an ack-ro-nym. Good story, I am jealous it was not mine!
Good Job!
What the hell, dude. Like I come here to learn!
I can imagine that new deckhand hearing a noise from the lower deck walking downstairs with a lantern [boooom], damn shithead.
Sounds like a good story but it isn't true. In 2002 the alleged acronymic origin for shit appeared on the Internet.
Find a dictionary and you will see its source.
Shit Source
It may not be true, but its still funny. Thanks for the link back to the site Brian.
I believed it until I searched for the source of the F**k and came across that.