The term Scuttlebutt corresponds to the colloquial concept of a water cooler in an office setting, which at times becomes the focus of congregation and casual discussion. Water for immediate consumption on a sailing ship was conventionally stored in a scuttled butt: a butt (cask) which had been scuttled by making a hole in it so the water could be withdrawn. Since sailors exchanged stories when they gathered at the scuttlebutt for a drink of water, scuttlebutt became Navy slang for stories or rumors.
