Multiple Choice, Multiple Answers

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Before mechanical refrigeration existed, the ice trade supplied cities with a way to preserve food and cool drinks through the warmer months. Entrepreneurs harvested thick blocks from frozen lakes and rivers each winter, storing them in insulated warehouses packed with sawdust to slow melting. Ships and trains then carried the ice to distant markets, including tropical ports where it fetched high prices as a novelty. The trade transformed household habits, enabling iceboxes to keep perishable food fresh for days rather than hours. It also created seasonal labor demand, employing thousands of workers each winter to cut and transport ice. The industry declined rapidly in the early twentieth century once mechanical refrigeration made ice production reliable and independent of weather, eliminating the risks of a poor freezing season.