Ice Harvesting

Without refrigeration or commercial ice makers, ice was a luxury that few could afford. The only way to obtain it was through ice harvesting, which involved carving the ice out of rivers and lakes to then be shipped around the world. At its peak, the ice harvesting industry employed more than 90,000 people between the US and Europe. If you remember the opening sequence of Frozen, ice harvesting is how the film starts:

Frederick Tudor mastered this technique, and from the mid 1800’s into the start of the 1900s, this is how both businesses and individuals got ice for chilling drinks and making cocktails.