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Cooper - n. - a person whose work is making or repairing barrels and casks (Webster's New World Dictionary)
From Barrel Making:
We often think in terms of wine or whiskey when we think of the things likely to be contained in a barrel. But, all sorts of foods were stored in barrels. Sauerkraut was fermented and stored in them. Fish, meats and some vegetables were dried and salted then stored and transported in them. Most any item that could be stored for a length of time would be stored in a barrel to keep out vermin. Fragile items such as eggs would be packed in them among layers of straw to keep them cooler as well as to keep them from breaking.
Barrels were great -- they could be rolled down ship gangplanks; have wheels and handles attached to them so a man could cart them about; be strapped onto a pack animal; be strapped together to float behind a raft down a river. One could bury them in a stream or cool earth as refrigerating units. They have been cut in half to feed or water stock, make a cradle for a child, or act as a large mixing bowl for any number of reasons. They were made of any tree that could be worked. Oak was the preferred wood for wine and whiskey casks as the grain is fine and the containers could more easily be made waterproof. Modified, they become butter churns, buckets and wash tubs.