I know people want to put to "bed," the issue of bed length, but I thought I would put in my two cents worth.  First of all are you talking about "day beds" or nightime beds.  In the late 18th century and into the 1800's people would recline and perhaps read or knit on a "bed" and sit up to do so. There were also fainting couches (bed) which, because of the tight corsettes women wore cut of circulation and breathing so women would inevitably faint while wearing them, especially the wealthier women, who to them image was everything.  Lastly, the average height of a person during post Colonial times to the late 1800's was just over 5 feet tall.  The idea about watching the fire, I do not know about that.

Andrew B. Jacobson
Director of Collections/Curator
New Jersey Museum of Agriculture
North Brunswick, NJ

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