Ice trade
19th-century and early 20th-century industry
Ice trade
The ice trade, also known as the frozen water trade, was a 19th-century and early 20th-century industry, primarily catering to demand on the east coast of the United States. Ice was both harvested locally in the winter months and stored for later sale in the summer, and was also imported from polar regions where it could be sourced year round, with Norway becoming the largest exporter of ice. The trade involved the large-scale harvesting, transport and sale of natural ice, and later the making and sale of artificial ice, for domestic consumption and commercial purposes. Ice was cut from the surface of ponds and streams, then stored in ice houses, before being sent on by ship, barge or railroad to its final destination around the world. The trade was started by the New England businessman Frederic Tudor in 1806. Tudor shipped ice to the Caribbean island of Martinique, hoping to sell it to wealthy members of the European elite there, using an ice house he had built specially for the purpose...
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