Continuing our tour of the upstairs of the Peterson House, we enter a bedroom with a massive headboard for the bed. I am very impressed by the intricacy of the woodworking — the arches, the turnings, the molding, and especially the burl. That piece would be costly today — and I'll bet it was expensive when the house was new. So beautiful!

Since older homes did not have central heating, the residents depended on wood or coal stoves to heat the most important rooms. I wonder what the chalice-like ornament on the top of the stove was for. I guess that the residents would put water in it to add humidity to the air — making the room temperature feel warmer. Your guess is welcome.

Here we see a cabinet with a large bowl, a large pitcher, and two cups. Since most older homes had only one bathroom (if that), this setup allowed the person sleeping in this bedroom to wash their face and hands when they went to bed and woke up in the morning. There was a chamber pot nearby which was used as a toilet at night.

Touring the house you might not notice (I didn't) the lack of closets. But for the limited amount of clothing most families had, a trunk could serve the same purpose. This looks like a nice one.

This chest and mirror appear to be a similar style to the headboard in the first photo above. I admire the intricacies of the drawer fronts — that would have been hard to craft with the tools of the day.

Here is a manually operated Singer sewing machine used to make the family's clothing — since there were no department stores in the area at that time and someone had to make the clothes.

My mom was a very talented seamstress — which served our family well when I was young. Over time, she owned several progressively more modern and capable sewing machines but in her heart, I'll bet she loved her antique manual Singer the most. She acquired it later in life after all of us kids were off on our own — and it was always proudly on display.

The Peterson house had only one bathroom — there may have been an earlier outhouse but there was no longer any sign of it if that was the case. This bathroom looks even more modern than in my great-grandfather's house, which contained a clawfoot-style tub & shower combination.

This looks like a lady's bathroom with a mannequin displaying the current dress that was being made.

The same bedroom contained a dressing/makeup table, a fancy stove, and another chamber pot.

I am guessing that this room was used as a study or library. There are some books on display plus the supplies to facilitate writing letters or paying bills.

Alas, our tour was coming to an end as we went down the stairs, again admiring the Christmas decorations on the railing and banister. Johnny and I will long have good memories of touring the Peterson House in all its holiday finery.

Outside in the sunshine, we walked to the back of the house to find a screened-in porch — just like my great-grandfather's house. Flashback time — recalling the evenings the extended family gathered to tell stories, crack jokes, play games, and sing. Even though I was young at the time, I greatly enjoyed listening to the family entertaining themselves in such a pleasant environment.

For those who live in the Phoenix area, you can click here to see what special events you would be able to enjoy at this special historic place.