Green’s Dictionary of Slang

1. a roast turkey.

1782		G. Parker Humorous Sketches 31: Tho’ still fond of fun he for humour was ripe, / To grub on my Alderman slang’d every night.
c.1786		Grose Classical Dict. of the Vulgar Tongue ms. additions n.p.: Alderman a Roasted Turkey garnished with Sausages. The latter are supposed to represent the Aldermans Gold Chain.
1788, 1796		Grose Classical Dict. of the Vulgar Tongue (3rd edn) n.p.: alderman. A roasted turkey garnished with sausages; the latter are supposed to represent the gold chain worn by those magistrates.
1811		Lex. Balatronicum.
1822		Life and Trial of James Mackcoull 88: Mackcoull suggested, that they should, in place of an alderman, have a goose and green pease for supper.
1859, 1860		Hotten Dict. of Modern Sl. etc.
1862		E. de la Bédollière Londres et les Anglais 312/1: alderman, dindon rôti, garni de saucisses qui sont censées représenter les anneaux de la chaine d’or que l’alderman porte au cou dans les cérémonies publiques.
1864, 1867, 1870		Hotten Sl. Dict.

2. a long smoking pipe; thus broken alderman, a short pipe.

1840		London Mag. Mar. 98/2: The waiter forthwith made his appearance, with an armful of huge clay pipes [...] called ‘aldermen’ from their exaggerated dimensions.
1859		G.A. Sala Gaslight and Daylight 61: Where, sir, is the old original alderman pipe, the churchwarden’s pipe, the unadulterated ‘yard of clay.’.
1865		Leaves from Diary of Celebrated Burglar 62/2: A large skittle-ball in one hand and a broken alderman (short pipe) in the other. [Ibid.] 107/1: He, a long alderman and a pot of ‘heavy’ were inseparable during the season.
1898		Belfast News-Letter 11 Apr. 6/5: Long clay pipes have long been known as ‘churchwardens’ [which] also used to be known by the name of ‘alderman’.

3. half-a-crown, 2s 6d (12½p).

1839		H. Brandon Dict. of the Flash or Cant Lang. 161/1: Alderman – half-a-crown.
1847		G.M.W. Reynolds Mysteries of London III 66/1: Tim sent the yack to church and christen but the churchman came to it through poll, as Tim’s shaler had slummed on him a sprat and an alderman last week.
1857		‘Ducange Anglicus’ Vulgar Tongue.
1859, 1860		Hotten Dict. of Modern Sl. etc.
1863		Story of a Lancashire Thief 9: There was Downy, a Turkey merchant in a small way, who had such a feeling for tusheroons that he was always changing his tanners and stags, and aldermen, into them.
1864, 1867, 1870		Hotten Sl. Dict.
1882		Sydney Sl. Dict. 10/2: The Parson is on the highfly [...] He’ll gammon the swells. He touched one for an alderman the first ten minutes.
1895		C. Crowe Aus. Sl. Dict 3: Alderman, a half-crown.
1901		Argus (Melbourne) 20 Sept. 6/4: A half crown may be either an alderman, half a bull, half a tusheroon, or half-a-caser.
1909		J. Ware Passing Eng. of the Victorian Era 4/2: Alderman (Peoples’). Half a dollar = half a crown, which by the way is fivepence more than the American ‘half’.
1922		Dundee Eve. Teleg. 19 July 2/4: Half-a-crown is known as an ‘alderman’.

4. a paunch; thus aldermanic, portly.

1772		Bridges Burlesque Homer (3rd edn) 363: We’ll send some people in their places, / With aldermanic guts and faces.
1914		Van Loan ‘The Indian Sign’ in Collier’s 1 Aug. in Van Loan (2004) 452: Old Pete, rather aldermanic as to paunch, but otherwise fit.
1934		(con. 1920s) J.T. Farrell Young Manhood in Studs Lonigan (1936) 244: He slapped his guts [...] there was no alderman yet.
1944		J.T. Farrell ‘A Sunday in April’ in To Whom It May Concern 153: Red and his wife walked home, Red walking proudly [...] his alderman sticking out.

5. a large crowbar [on pattern of citizen n. (1); gentleman n.; lord mayor n.¹ : smaller and larger versions of the tool].

1872		Diprose’s Boom about London n.p.: Alderman [...] This is a ‘head [chief] bar’ which would open any safe.
1889		Clarkson & Richardson Police! 268: Another ‘stock-in-trade’ consisted of a key-saw, a chisel [...] a ‘little alderman’ – a jemmy in two parts which can be screwed together – and a number of skeleton keys.
1907		D. Stewart Shadows of the Night in Illus. Police News 7 Dec. 12/4: ‘Give us the “Alderman” and the “Lord Mayor” (implements for forcing safes)’.
1956		R.T. Hopkins Banker Tells All 137: ‘We had a bar, my lord,’ he added, again addressing the judge, ‘which we did not use on this occasion, and which we call the alderman.’.