LOUDONVILLE — Before the invention of the “electric icebox” locals depended (during the summer) on ice harvested from area waterways the previous winter.
One of the primary sources of ice in the area was Odell’s Lake.
The first step in harvesting ice was to clear the ice of any accumulated snow. Snow insulated the water and slowed the freezing process, and caused “crusty” ice that melted faster.
Once the ice was at least eight inches thick, it was ready to cut. A horse drawn “scorer” was pulled across the ice to cut, or score, straight lines into a grid on the ice. The goal was not to actually cut through the ice, but to define the blocks so that men with hand saws would know where to cut.
Once cut into large blocks, the ice was floated into channels and dragged onto an “elevator” that loaded them into large ice houses or onto freight cars from adjacent rail lines. Although eight inches was the minimum, the operation would use ice as thick as two feet with blocks weighing over 200 pounds.
Once in the ice house or freight car, the ice was packed with a thick covering of sawdust. The sawdust insulated it, allowing it to stay frozen throughout the hot summers.
Ice was then delivered, as often as every few days, by horse-drawn wagon to customers. At the customer’s house it was placed into the ice box, which varied from small insulated boxes to large in-ground concrete pits. Whenever the customer needed ice they simply chiseled off the desired amount.
By 1913 the electric icebox had hit the market, although the lack of electricity (and money to purchase the electric iceboxes) still led many in the area to rely on harvested ice for a few more decades.
More information on the Cleo Redd Fisher Museum can be found at this link.
