Some time ago there was an episode concerning the term 'bluebark', which was used to the belongings of deceased military personnel. The origins of the word were unclear, and I believe you said it was going into your "permanent file" for investigation. Just recently, I stumbled across a possible explanation, and was wondering if anyone else had heard it. According to a website for a company called National Forwarding, "Bluebark is a term derived historically from the type of wood utilized for coffin construction." There was no further information on the subject, and I have no idea how to find out more on the topic, but thought it was an interesting possibility.

barbridg

Well, when I finally found the comments on the show, I see there was a more plausible explanation offered by Joshua Hudson, which said certain parts of ships were painted blue to indicate mourning. Still, the reference to coffin wood showed up on two official Marine documents I found, and I also found references to 2 different types of trees, sapele from W. Africa, and kapok found in Asia & South America, both of which were used for coffins, and both of which had bluish bark.

I do think the blue paint idea seems more directly related – but then, it leads to the question of how and why that tradition started. Oh dear, I thiink I need a nap.