When I lived back east I’d make a point of trying to coordinate one of my buying trips up North with the week the leaves were changing colors. There was a window of about a week when the leaves would change to beautiful burnt orange and yellow coloring…….. then they would drop for the winter.
When I lived back east my pursuit of the elusive antique iron bed was an ongoing one that took me into some of the most beautiful countryside in the greater Northeast. Because the bulk of our population was centered throughout those areas back in the 1800’s, searching for iron beds that were made then, was best focused in those areas. It wasn’t until 1851 that John B. Soule said, which has often been credited to writer/newspaper publisher Horace Greeley, “Go west, young man, and grow up with the country”, that iron beds, with the help of the railroad, started making their way west of the Mississippi.
I look back on those buying trips and realize how fortunate I was to have been in the business of hunting for antiques and iron beds. It afforded me a perfect reason to always be able to enjoy the seasonal changes throughout the Northeast. Back then iron beds were quite prevalent in those areas, so I actually had more time to soak up the scenery. As time went on and iron beds started drying up, I found myself spreading the coverage of my buying trips and looking into other areas that hadn’t been picked over quite as much.
But as my buying trips spread farther away from the beautiful Appalachian Mountains and iron beds started showing up in areas I’d yet to tap in to , I realized these new areas in the deep South and West of the Mississippi also had beautiful countryside to be admired. I think the most fun I’ve had in hunting for iron beds over the past 40 years have been the unique individuals I’ve come into contact with and the beautiful countryside they live in.
As iron beds run out in a particular area, I search for them elsewhere. This is a big country and over the last 200 years, I doubt there is a state, town, borough, or region that hasn’t been home to it’s fair share of iron beds.
I hope you’ve found this blog informative. I invite you to revisit my website
to answer any and all questions you might have about antique iron beds.
I also invite you to take a look at the multiple “Before & After” photo’s on our
company Facebook
at
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Cathouse-Antique-Iron-Beds/126838177398?ref=ts
