Young people today don’t know what an “icebox” is.
Before electricity was available in rural areas, people had to start planning and preparing for hot summer days in the middle of bitterly cold winter. Ice was taken from lakes, streams, or stock dams. I don’t remember any concern about clean water. They just wanted the ice to be at least 1 foot thick.
Ice harvest was like summer threshing. Several families would get together to cut ice blocks. Usually, the ice was cut with a large-tooth saw quite similar to a cross-cut timber saw. The ice was sawed into square blocks about 18-24 inches square. When the blocks were cut,