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My dad grew up in rural Iowa almost 100 years ago. He didn't have electricity or running water and no air conditioning or refrigeration. Ice cream was a rare tr

by todd8 7y ago

My dad grew up in rural Iowa almost 100 years ago. He didn't have electricity or running water and no air conditioning or refrigeration. Ice cream was a rare treat that could be bought on a trip into town or perhaps made in the winter. Ice was available in the winter, and also in the summer because large blocks of ice would be cut from frozen ponds during the winter and stored in ice houses. These ice houses here partially underground structures, like a barn but buried up to their roof underground. I saw an ice house that was no longer in use as a young child, and as I recall (I would have been perhaps seven years old) I was told that it was filled with sawdust, hay, or straw to insulate the blocks of ice. Today, the reported underground temperature in Iowa at 40 inches is about 65°F (18°C) and deeper it can reaches a steady state temperature of 45 to 50°F (7 to 13 °C). I don't know how late into summer those ice blocks survived. I remember growing up that my father greatly enjoyed making homemade ice cream; I suppose it connected him to the happy times of his quite difficult childhood.

edge17 7y ago
If done properly, it can survive quite a bit. Much of the ice that was imported into India in the early 1800's came from Boston, cut from rivers around Boston https://www.wired.com/2010/09/0913calcutta-ice-ship/ https://www.wired.com/2010/09/0913calcutta-ice-ship/
pbhjpbhj 7y ago
Stately homes in the UK often have an ice-house in the grounds somewhere. I think they're sited to make use of underground water, as in the use of underground streams in the Yakhchal. A damp shaded spot can be surprisingly cool in Summer. As an aside the Ancient Greeks had a type of wine cooler that worked on evaporative cooling using an exterior porous pot and an internal glazed pot, with wet sand placed in the gap.
- cr0sh 7y ago
  > As an aside the Ancient Greeks had a type of wine cooler that worked on evaporative cooling using an exterior porous pot and an internal glazed pot, with wet sand placed in the gap. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pot-in-pot_refrigerator https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pot-in-pot_refrigerator Still in use today, especially in the "developing world" - usually as a means to keep certain medicines and drugs cooled that would go bad without it.
univacky 7y ago
Ice cream was popular in the 18th century, particularly known to be favorites of George Washington and Thomas Jefferson. Their homes at Mount Vernon and Monticello, respectively, both have ice houses. They would harvest ice from the Potomac or Rapidan River, pack it with insulating material (sawdust) and it would keep for quite some time in the cool well/cellar-like structure. https://www.mountvernon.org/the-estate-gardens/ice/ https://www.mountvernon.org/the-estate-gardens/ice/ https://www.mountvernon.org/the-estate-gardens/location/ice-house/ https://www.mountvernon.org/the-estate-gardens/location/ice-... http://www.ushistory.org/presidentshouse/history/icehouse.php http://www.ushistory.org/presidentshouse/history/icehouse.ph...
beckler 7y ago
this reminded me of Pykrete [0]. basically someone figured out the right ratio of water to sawdust for a frozen block of ice, and it creates a very durable and tough material similar to concrete (as long as it remains at or below freezing). the british planned to make an aircraft carrier [1] out of the stuff, but it was ultimately deemed too expensive. [0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pykrete https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pykrete [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Project_Habakkuk https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Project_Habakkuk
technothrasher 7y ago
stored in ice houses We've actually got an ice house near me that is still in use. It is obviously refrigerated these days, and they're no longer getting the ice out of the lake, but they do sell ice out of the place. I go get large quantities from them for my summer party every year.
- cr0sh 7y ago
  We used to have one in my hometown, that wasn't far from where I lived with my parents; I could get to it easily on my bicycle (not that I ever went). It was a large industrial building, with huge refrigeration systems on the outside - pipes, radiators, etc. Then a large building next to that. I'm not sure what all products they sold. But I recall going with my dad one time to go get a bunch of crushed ice to make ice cream one summer. He told me to bring my winter jacket (basically a ski jacket almost). We got to the place, and I guess he knew someone that worked there (my dad worked as a maintenance and construction for the county road department - ran graders and other heavy equipment, or was out there shoveling asphalt and oil - but for some reason, he also knew a lot of people around town). They took us into the main ice building - and it was crazy. I just remember it being very cold (I was wearing jeans, shoes, a t-shirt and my jacket), and there were workers in heavy winter garb moving around and handling large blocks of ice - refrigerator sized! We got a small tour (very brief - it was just way too cold in there!), then we left to the office, they brought out a few large bags of crushed ice, my dad paid and we left. From what I recall, we only used a portion of the ice; the rest went into our chest freezer (probably to protect the meat we stored in there from power outages, which happened occasionally during the summer).

by todd8 7y ago

edge17 7y ago

If done properly, it can survive quite a bit. Much of the ice that was imported into India in the early 1800's came from Boston, cut from rivers around Boston https://www.wired.com/2010/09/0913calcutta-ice-ship/ https://www.wired.com/2010/09/0913calcutta-ice-ship/

pbhjpbhj 7y ago

Stately homes in the UK often have an ice-house in the grounds somewhere. I think they're sited to make use of underground water, as in the use of underground streams in the Yakhchal. A damp shaded spot can be surprisingly cool in Summer. As an aside the Ancient Greeks had a type of wine cooler that worked on evaporative cooling using an exterior porous pot and an internal glazed pot, with wet sand placed in the gap.

cr0sh 7y ago
> As an aside the Ancient Greeks had a type of wine cooler that worked on evaporative cooling using an exterior porous pot and an internal glazed pot, with wet sand placed in the gap. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pot-in-pot_refrigerator https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pot-in-pot_refrigerator Still in use today, especially in the "developing world" - usually as a means to keep certain medicines and drugs cooled that would go bad without it.

univacky 7y ago

Ice cream was popular in the 18th century, particularly known to be favorites of George Washington and Thomas Jefferson. Their homes at Mount Vernon and Monticello, respectively, both have ice houses. They would harvest ice from the Potomac or Rapidan River, pack it with insulating material (sawdust) and it would keep for quite some time in the cool well/cellar-like structure. https://www.mountvernon.org/the-estate-gardens/ice/ https://www.mountvernon.org/the-estate-gardens/ice/ https://www.mountvernon.org/the-estate-gardens/location/ice-house/ https://www.mountvernon.org/the-estate-gardens/location/ice-... http://www.ushistory.org/presidentshouse/history/icehouse.php http://www.ushistory.org/presidentshouse/history/icehouse.ph...

beckler 7y ago

this reminded me of Pykrete [0]. basically someone figured out the right ratio of water to sawdust for a frozen block of ice, and it creates a very durable and tough material similar to concrete (as long as it remains at or below freezing). the british planned to make an aircraft carrier [1] out of the stuff, but it was ultimately deemed too expensive. [0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pykrete https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pykrete [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Project_Habakkuk https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Project_Habakkuk

technothrasher 7y ago

stored in ice houses We've actually got an ice house near me that is still in use. It is obviously refrigerated these days, and they're no longer getting the ice out of the lake, but they do sell ice out of the place. I go get large quantities from them for my summer party every year.

cr0sh 7y ago
We used to have one in my hometown, that wasn't far from where I lived with my parents; I could get to it easily on my bicycle (not that I ever went). It was a large industrial building, with huge refrigeration systems on the outside - pipes, radiators, etc. Then a large building next to that. I'm not sure what all products they sold. But I recall going with my dad one time to go get a bunch of crushed ice to make ice cream one summer. He told me to bring my winter jacket (basically a ski jacket almost). We got to the place, and I guess he knew someone that worked there (my dad worked as a maintenance and construction for the county road department - ran graders and other heavy equipment, or was out there shoveling asphalt and oil - but for some reason, he also knew a lot of people around town). They took us into the main ice building - and it was crazy. I just remember it being very cold (I was wearing jeans, shoes, a t-shirt and my jacket), and there were workers in heavy winter garb moving around and handling large blocks of ice - refrigerator sized! We got a small tour (very brief - it was just way too cold in there!), then we left to the office, they brought out a few large bags of crushed ice, my dad paid and we left. From what I recall, we only used a portion of the ice; the rest went into our chest freezer (probably to protect the meat we stored in there from power outages, which happened occasionally during the summer).