section hand

noun

, Railroads.

1. a person who works on a section gang.

Word History and Origins

Origin of section hand¹

First recorded in 1870–75

Example Sentences

A new volume in the “Railroad Series,” in which the young section-hand is promoted to a train despatcher.

From Project Gutenberg

The whole thing wasn't any bigger an asset than a job as a section hand on the U P.

From Project Gutenberg

This man isn't a section hand: he's wearing a uniform; he has a cap; it looks as if he had some right to tell us to stop.

From Project Gutenberg

But she has never before been seen in America employed, for instance, as a section hand on a railway.

From Project Gutenberg

Maybe some section hand stuck a feather of that eagle in his hat and called it macaroni!

From Project Gutenberg