Old Familiar Memories - Photo 157

Ice Delivery Truck

An icebox (also called a cold closet) is a compact non-mechanical refrigerator which was a common kitchen appliance before the development of safe powered refrigeration devices. The horse-drawn ice wagon and the daily occupation of the iceman, who made regular door-to-door deliveries of block ice, was as much a social institution as the milk man.

Apartment buildings had small doors that opened to the ice box from the back porch. The ice man would bring the block of ice and insert it into the ice box through this door. Ice was delivered on a regular basis to these buildings and the people would pay for the ice. Children would go on the ice wagon and take chips of fallen ice as treats during the summer. Because of the prevalence of the icebox in recent human history, the name "icebox" is still used colloquially for the modern home refrigerator by older persons in some regions.