"England is old and small and they started running out of places to bury people. So they would dig up coffins and would take the bones to a "bone-house" and reuse the grave. When reopening these coffins, one out of 25 coffins were found to have scratch marks on the inside and they realized they had been burying people alive. So they thought they would tie a string on the wrist of the corpse, lead it through the coffin and up through the ground and tie it to a bell. Someone would have to sit out in the graveyard all night (the "graveyard shift") to listen for the bell; thus, someone could be "saved by the bell" or was considered a "dead ringer."
It is a great story, but I doubted the truth of it because "dead ringer" have a totally different meaning today "two people who look exactly alike" so I did some googling and found an article on snopes: http://www.snopes.com/language/phrases/1500.asp
That's an absolutely fascinating answer, Not Flo. I'm gonna save a copy in my Mug file. (It used to be an Ask file, then it became a Blurtit file, now it's a Mug fie.) Thank you.
The burying people alive is a known fact along with the bell and rope... but id like to offer another possibility ... disections were not allowed in the 18th century but that's how doctors learned their trade... so grave robbing was a common occupation... especially fresh Graves... so I'm wondering if this may be another reason for the name
That also sounds possible. Even probable. But it's a great story and I'm gonna stick with it for as long as I can. At the very least, it's "am alternative fact". >:-)
I don't know if anyone's interested but I found a different link that has other explanations. The problem is, sometimes we never know the actual truth of word or phrase origins because many date back to before anyone thought of archiving them. Just like Not Flo, I like finding facts. I'm pretty much a research junky.
Here is the link. I found it to be very interesting. Again, I don't know if it's the truth but it gives as good an explanation as any along with some other interesting tidbits.
I believe it'a an American expression that started in the 1800 meaning night shift, would love to say that it has a more exciting origin to it than that, but I don't think it has. :-)
This post was edited by Benedict Arnold at January 25, 2017 3:53 PM MST
I've heard the story Not flo said.. so maybe true.. I always thought it was more mundane.. as in.. the graveyard shift was the very late overnight one.. a time when "only the dead would be *awake*" and/or that generally speaking the people who tend to work such shifts were much older people, people who maybe couldnt get a job elsewhere and reasonable hours, as it's a job no one really wants...people who like a quiet life.. and someone might have been being cheeky calling it graveyard to refer to older people, at the very end of their working life doing the job
Benedict Arnold 