Throw Back to Then

Realtor, John Patrick Schutz writes “Harvesting of ice for storage purposes and meal enhancement at restaurants began commercially in the USA in 1805 and demand skyrocketed as modern convenience and the middle class both expanded to become part of the everyday life of the young USA. The ice was stored in three ice houses, and transported over Hook Mountain to the Hudson River below.The stored ice was placed on inclined railroad cars, transported down the mountainside, placed on barges on the Hudson River, and shipped to New York City. So much ice was shipped that Rockland Lake became known as the Icehouse of New York City.”

Watch as ice is harvested from Rockland Lake in this 1902 video.