Literally, a combined effort to roll logs for cabin-building or for clearing land.
1833. The good villagers resorted to what, in woodland phrase, is called “log-rolling,” which means a combined effort of many to do what is either difficult or impossible to one.—J. K. Paulding, ‘The Banks of the Ohio,’ ii. 41.
1835. A family comes to sit down in the forest,—they must have a shelter; and giving notice far and near, their neighbours for many miles round lay down their employments, shoulder their axes, and come into the ‘log-rolling.’—C. J. Latrobe, ‘The Rambler in North America,’ i. 110 (N.Y.).
1843. A log-rolling is described by B. R. Hall (‘Robert Carlton’) in ‘The New Purchase,’ ch. xxvi. (i. 241).
1889. In some localities more thickly settled than others, neighbors rendered each other mutual assistance. In this case, the trunks of very large trees were cut down, “chopped” into logs, rolled together, and set on fire. Hence the phrase, “log-rolling” in the vocabulary of our political commonplaces.—Phelan, ‘History of Tennessee,’ p. 28.
