The ‘Cracket’ started off down the coal mines in the north east of the U.K. used by the miners to assist them on the coal face. They were crudely made but done the job. The cracket eventually made its way into the coal miners homes, a pitman came home from work and sat on a cracket to remove his dirty pit clothes before getting into the bath. He wasn't allowed to sit on a chair and cover it in coal dust.

The Geordie word 'crack' (conversation) and 'cracket' are clearly linked. In fact there's no better place to have a bit crack than sitting on a cracket! But 'crack' is a widely used Irish word for a chat. So the origin of cracking and crackets maybe goes back to Ireland.
Nowadays they are still used in many homes and are a great historical piece of multifunctional furniture.