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Black Maria

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mrs.pudding | 19:27 Thu 10th Mar 2005 | Phrases & Sayings
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Can anyone tell me why Black Marias were so called? 
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The Black Mariah, now that's a good question - I'm going to look that up on Google!
As I recall, there was a large black lady in the 1920's who used to help the police out, she could flatten most criminal types, and her name was Mariah, and the name was passed on.

Click http://www.worldwidewords.org/qa/qa-bla1.htm for a little more detail on Andy's correct response.

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she sounds terrifying!!!

Yep. My Brewer's Dictionary of Phrase and Fable says:

'The police van used for the conveyance of prisoners.It is suggested that the name is derived from that of Maria Lee, a Boston negress [the Dictionary's term, not mine] who kept a lodging-house.She was of such great size that when the police required help they sent for Black Maria, who soon collared the refractory men and led them to the lock-up. The term was certainly in use in Boston in the 1840s.'.

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