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Tradition goes back to the early days; A normal sailor's duty every day was to 'scrub the deck', first by scraping every foot of the deck with a hollystone, essentially sanding it, it also removed tar that seeped from in between the planks. Then the deck was mopped down with saltwater to remove the dust, tar, and splinters, on some occasions, blood, if it was a fighting ship.

Most sailors couldn't afford proper shoes, many went barefoot, scrubbing the deck would ensure the sailor was able to do their job without getting splinters in his feet

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13y ago
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12y ago

so others would know if someone peed on it

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Q: Why did sailors scrub the deck?
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