The settle-bench or country settee is almost exclusively a product of eastern Upper Canada. It seems to have been most popular in the region extending from Belleville to the Quebec border and as far north as Ottawa. A few have been found in the German settled area just north of Toronto. Only on rare occasions are they discovered in western Ontario. Posts, arms, and spindles were turned on a single-blade lathe so no two are identical. Backs were made of wide boards or spindles. Early settle-benches were painted. Wooden slats or ropes supported mattresses which sometimes were filled with corn husks. The settle-bench was common throughout most of the nineteenth century.
Courtesy: Metropolitan Toronto and Region Conservation Authority: Black Creek Pioneer Village
