Post by Weaving Haus on Feb 17, 2014 21:34:20 GMT
Have you ever been told to “sleep tight”? Or better yet, have you been told to “sleep tight, and “don’t let the bedbugs bite?” If you are a history lover (as we are) you may already know what that meant to people of long ago. If you own a historical home (as we do) and you own rope beds (as we do) you may know what it means, but you may not have a clue how to make it happen! That is the position we found ourselves in several years ago.
Does your rope bed have pegs on the top of the rails? Or, does it have holes in the sides of the rails? Therein lies the secret of a rope bed. Beds with holes in the sides are true rope beds in that they use a series of ropes strung in and out of the sides of the rails, to form a supporting grid on which to rest the ticking, or mattress, as we call it today. Beds with pegs lining the top of the rails did not use the ropes to form a grid for support. Instead the ropes were laced to the pegs to anchor a ‘sacking bottom.’ The early sacking bottoms were fashioned from a rectangular piece of heavy fabric, probably linen, that had sturdy buttonholes lining the edges of the material. Rope was strung through each ‘buttonhole’ and wrapped securely around the pegs. Thus the ‘sacking bottom’ became the foundation on which to lay the mattress ticking. This kind of bed was more versatile than the earlier rope beds and became popular in the 18th and 19th centuries.
The first rope beds, with the grid of ropes and the holes in the side of the rails, would sag as the ropes would stretch from the weight of those in the bed. The ropes were’ tightened ‘ daily with a ‘straining wrench’. This could be the daily chore of an older child or a maid. Sleepers would be wished to have a good night’s sleep in a bed that didn’t sag if they were told to ‘sleep tight.’
The peg beds also needed tightening but did not require the wrench to accomplish the task; some good pulling and tugging on the ropes would tighten the fabric, allowing sleepers to ‘sleep tight’ without the hard work of turning the wrench.
Mattress ticking was also made of sturdy fabric, sewn as a large sack to fit on top of the ropes or sacking bottom. Into it straw or grass was stuffed to make a soft bed for sleeping. Of course along with the straw or grass, bugs were often stuffed into the ticking; which then crawled out and bit the occupants of the beds. So as a sleeper, you were wished a double blessing if you were told to ‘sleep tight ‘(in a taut bed) and ‘don’t let the bedbugs bite’ (with a ticking minus bugs)! Feathers were also used in mattress ticking, but early settlers used what was available in their area.
The sacking bottom is documented by J. Thomas Scharf in his book “History of Westchester County New York, from 1886. He describes the pieces of furniture in the room which he is occupying. He notes, “The bed has a sacking bottom pierced at intervals with large holes and worked with coarse linen thread in button hole stitches. Through these orifices a stout rope was inserted and drawn around the corresponding pegs in the bedstead by strong hands upon this foundation great feather beds were piled.”
So, if you are like us, you may own a rope bed. You may know how to string it, if you have one with holes in the sides. And if so, what are you using as a mattress ticking?
If you have one with pegs on the rails, locating a sacking bottom is not as easy as figuring out the roping. On top of that (literally) you may not have a clue where to locate a mattress ticking that anyone would want to sleep on!
Does your rope bed have pegs on the top of the rails? Or, does it have holes in the sides of the rails? Therein lies the secret of a rope bed. Beds with holes in the sides are true rope beds in that they use a series of ropes strung in and out of the sides of the rails, to form a supporting grid on which to rest the ticking, or mattress, as we call it today. Beds with pegs lining the top of the rails did not use the ropes to form a grid for support. Instead the ropes were laced to the pegs to anchor a ‘sacking bottom.’ The early sacking bottoms were fashioned from a rectangular piece of heavy fabric, probably linen, that had sturdy buttonholes lining the edges of the material. Rope was strung through each ‘buttonhole’ and wrapped securely around the pegs. Thus the ‘sacking bottom’ became the foundation on which to lay the mattress ticking. This kind of bed was more versatile than the earlier rope beds and became popular in the 18th and 19th centuries.
The first rope beds, with the grid of ropes and the holes in the side of the rails, would sag as the ropes would stretch from the weight of those in the bed. The ropes were’ tightened ‘ daily with a ‘straining wrench’. This could be the daily chore of an older child or a maid. Sleepers would be wished to have a good night’s sleep in a bed that didn’t sag if they were told to ‘sleep tight.’
The peg beds also needed tightening but did not require the wrench to accomplish the task; some good pulling and tugging on the ropes would tighten the fabric, allowing sleepers to ‘sleep tight’ without the hard work of turning the wrench.
Mattress ticking was also made of sturdy fabric, sewn as a large sack to fit on top of the ropes or sacking bottom. Into it straw or grass was stuffed to make a soft bed for sleeping. Of course along with the straw or grass, bugs were often stuffed into the ticking; which then crawled out and bit the occupants of the beds. So as a sleeper, you were wished a double blessing if you were told to ‘sleep tight ‘(in a taut bed) and ‘don’t let the bedbugs bite’ (with a ticking minus bugs)! Feathers were also used in mattress ticking, but early settlers used what was available in their area.
The sacking bottom is documented by J. Thomas Scharf in his book “History of Westchester County New York, from 1886. He describes the pieces of furniture in the room which he is occupying. He notes, “The bed has a sacking bottom pierced at intervals with large holes and worked with coarse linen thread in button hole stitches. Through these orifices a stout rope was inserted and drawn around the corresponding pegs in the bedstead by strong hands upon this foundation great feather beds were piled.”
So, if you are like us, you may own a rope bed. You may know how to string it, if you have one with holes in the sides. And if so, what are you using as a mattress ticking?
If you have one with pegs on the rails, locating a sacking bottom is not as easy as figuring out the roping. On top of that (literally) you may not have a clue where to locate a mattress ticking that anyone would want to sleep on!