Back in the day, early mattresses were made of simply hay or straw covered with ticking. Under the mattress was roping, woven through the bed frame (usually 4-poster) and at the footboard, the rope would be visible and it could be tightened with a stick. Hence the origin of the old nursery rhyme instructing the sleeper to “Sleep tight (tighten the ropes), and don’t let the bed bugs bite (breeding in the straw mattresses), but if they do, slap a few black and blue!”
“Fun facts” shared by Linka Lewis, GRI, REALTOR, Calcagni Associates & also former furniture guide at the Philadelphia Museum of Art
