king post
noun1
A central vertical supporting post used in architecture and bridge as well as in aircraft and ship design.
- They called him King-Post on board of the Pequod; because, in form, he could be well likened to the short, square timber known by that name in Arctic whalers; and which by the means of many radiating side timbers inserted into it, serves to brace the ship against the icy concussions of those battering seas.1851 November 14, Herman Melville, “chapter 27”, in Moby-Dick; or, The Whale, 1st American edition, New York, N.Y.: Harper & Brothers; London: Richard Bentley, →OCLC:
- Synonyms
- collar beam