Continuing our description of Elizabeth Trumbo’s household goods, we’ve already looked at her stable and her kitchen. We turn now to the inventory of her furniture from her probate file. Unfortunately, there are no pictures of her actual furniture, so I have attempted to find examples that convey the idea, if not the actual item.
cottage bedstead
4 cottage bedsteads – A cottage bedstead was a wooden frame that supported a mattress and bedding. The bedstead was often decorated with floral designs, curves, and scrolls.
common bedstead
1 common bedstead – often made from iron or brass. Considered healthier as there were no crevices to hide dust, dirt, or bedbugs.
bureau / dresser
2 small bureaus
1 large bureau
washstand
1 washstand – a piece of furniture to hold a wash basin and pitcher, used before the advent of modern plumbing
1 stand – small table, possibly for holding a plant
cane seated rocking chair
1 set cane seated chairs
2 cane seated chairs
2 cane seated rocking chairs
flag seat chair
1 set flag bottomed chairs
1 common rocking chair – wooden
1 high-chair
1 extension table – with extra leaves to make it longer
drop-leaf table
2 fall-leaf tables
P. P. Stewart’s Large Oven Air-Tight Summer and Winter Cooking Stove
1 Stewart Cooking Stove and fixtures
available from the Sears catalog
1 Parlor stove – burned wood or coal. The parlor would be the only room in the house other than the kitchen that was heated.
More elegant, but of the right type
1 lounge and mattress
We’re nearly done with Elizabeth’s household inventory. All that remains is the contents of her linen closet. Watch this space.
Dayton and the Greens 
A little extra info on the parlor stove (I once owned one): the urn on top was purely decorative, but the birdcage underneath was protection from the hot grate on top, where a pot or pan could be placed such as a teapot. That was early childproofing much like the decorative fins that surround the unit to protect you from accidential burns should you stumble and fall against the stove. The large door was to insert wood or coal, while a smaller door on the bottom was meant for removal of ash. Modern potbell stoves are shorter and wider, the logs are placed flat, while the tall narrow space of the parlor stove allowed for the wood to be arranged in a triangle/teepee formation (logs could be much longer, requiring less work to cut). A very nice stove!
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