Wrought iron and cast iron trivets, Mrs. William Rockwood American Collection
Historically, three- and four-legged iron stands called trivets were used for slow cooking in a fireplace and for resting pots while they cooled. Trivets that looked like hearts or arrowheads were used for flat irons while pressing laundry. Shaped like traditional folk designs or geometrical patterns, they became sought-after antiques, as symbols of a romanticized American past when the home’s activities revolved around the hearth and an open fire. During the first few decades of The Children’s Museum, many such “pioneer” antiques were donated by area residents like Mrs. William Rockwood and sent to schools for hands-on learning about pre–industrial life history in the United States.
