Sleep Tight

Our Curator Cat, Frankie, knows when to take a rest.

And speaking of a comfortable rest, have you heard the story about the phrase “sleep tight”?

It goes like this: beds in the 1800s (and going back as early as the 1500s) were often made with a wooden frame and ropes strung across the middle to support the mattress. Over time, the ropes would stretch out or loosen, so the bed needed occasional tightening—otherwise, the sleeper could find their mattress was very saggy in the middle.

The story makes a lot of sense, and it could easily apply to beds in the Harrison House. However, researchers at other house museums that “sleep tight” is actually an archaic way to say “sleep snugly”—you can read their argument here. And you can learn more about all kinds of historic beds here, too. We may never know exactly where some historic phrases come from, but we can at least be grateful for modern comfortable beds!