Ran across this 1923 Carl Company ad for dustless ash sifters, only $2.98 in Carl's Busy Basement, and it occurred to me that even though I've heard the phrase "sifting through the ashes" all my life, I wasn't 100% certain why one sifted through them. Having grown up with a gas furnace (albeit one converted from coal), I never had to clean up after a coal burning furnace or stove. Turns out you sifted through the ashes for two reasons: to avoid putting hot coals in the ash bin, where they might burn through and cause fires, and to return any useable chunks of coal to the stove or furnace. Because coal didn't grow on trees, you know.
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