pot-walloper

British  

/ ˈpɒtˌwɒlə /

noun

1. (in some English boroughs) a man entitled to the franchise before 1832 by virtue of possession of his own fireplace

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Etymology

Origin of pot-walloper

C18: from _pot ¹ + wallop to boil furiously, from Old English weallan to boil

Example Sentences

Pot-waller, pot′-wol′ėr, Pot-walloper, pot-wol′op-ėr, n. a pot-boiler: a voter in certain English boroughs where, before the Reform Bill of 1832, every one who boiled a pot—i.e. every male householder or lodger, was entitled to vote—also Pot′-wall′oner.—adj.

From Project Gutenberg

In one section no one could vote except substantial property holders, in another none but town officers, while in a third every man who had a tenement big enough to boil a pot in, and hence called a "Pot-walloper," possessed the right.

From Project Gutenberg