Are you looking to simply clean or refinish? I get the impression you don't wish to mess with it any more than necessary. Considering the original finish was probably oil, which will darken the wood, you may need more than cleaning to reveal the grain.
If you don't want to damage whatever old finish is left, try mineral spirits, it's pretty much safe with any finish, although, at 127 years old, there may not be much finish there. If you're not seeing what you want, you'll probably need to consider stripper. Personally, I'm partial to methylene chloride.
If you're considering the above suggestions, I'll only say oven cleaner is pretty harsh, though it works well, and I've always avoided water on refinished wood, it often involves sanding.
Good luck, Tim
