Before electricity - how did they make ice for everyday use?

Question

besides saving snowballs, lol --- did they have ice? how did they keep things cold?

Answer 1

Here in Mich, my grandfather said ice was big buisness. They cut blocks from the lakes in winter and shipped it by rail all over the USA. They had insulated icehouses to make it last all summer.

Answer 2

They didn't make ice back then.  And they didn't have fridges to keep thinks cool.  They smoked meats and let soup sit on the stove.  It actually made people healthier with the enzymes, etc that built up in food.  They would ferment foods like breads, drinks, grains, so they wouldn't have to be refrigerated.

Answer 3

They didn't make ice before electricity because you can't make it without it.

Answer 4

OK there are several answers to these questions.

Before common refrigeration, people would wait until winter when the lakes and rivers froze over.  Once the ice was thick enough they would saw chunks of ice out of the river.  They would store this ice in an ice house...usually a small hut that was partly underground and lined with lots of straw to prevent melting.  Even in the early 1900's, ice men would deliver ice for your ice box.

Another common form of refrigeration was to put things in a crock in a cool stream or spring.  This led to people building Springhouses that would keep the spring clean and would also provide for protected cool storage.  We had a springhouse on our former property and found it an excellent way to cool down a large watermelon in the summertime.

A water-free way to cool things down was to store it in a root cellar, because underground temperature is much less variable and generally cooler.

Answer 5

when my mom was young they put things in a stream, had a cellar, and canned(glass jar with lid, heated to seal) meats. also for meat; salted, smoked,...,

Answer 6

Ice was a luxury for the rich (17th/18th century) Icehouses were built for the earlier answer re. winter and sawdust etc.

Answer 7

The Romans sent slaves to the mountains in the late winter and spring to harvest ice, then bring it back to the villas for storage to be used in summer months.

Answer 8

They chopped big blocks of ice from the rivers in the winter and stored them in buildings filled with straw bales and saw dust.  I remember hearing my Dad tell me about them doing this when he was young.  Then they chipped pieces off to sell or as needed.  Hard to believe they figured out how to keep it for so long isn't it?

Answer 9

They didn't make ice.  They'd cut it during the winter from places called ice ponds with big long saws - then they'd store it in sawdust.  Must have been a horrific mess.

Answer 10

Yes they did have ice!

I work with an older man from Washington state who cut ice with saws from glaciers to keep their root cellars cold all summer. The chunks were huge, the ground was about 50 F, and they covered the blocks with sawdust for insulation.

Indians, from Asia mind you, would place straw over bowls in a breezeway.   The evaporated water would condense and freeze on the straw to be rung out in water. (Discovery Channel, "What the Ancients Knew")

Answer 11

Who are THEY? Abominable Snowmen?!

Answer 12

They would dig a deep hole and line it with hay that would act like an insulator. Then, in winter, they would saw blocks of ice out of the lakes or rivers and store it until needed. They would also transport ice to cities via wagon or train. Good question!

Answer 13

They didn't use ice.  I have been to Mexico and there are some areas where they still don't even use ice.

As for keeping things cold, people weren't as paranoid as we are about food today.  Before the ice box, people ate a lot of fermented foods, which stayed out and actually gained healthy enzymes that are missing from our diet today.

If you want to learn more about fermenting foods check out this site.