Raquette Lake Ice Harvest 2013
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 25 ส.ค. 2024
- THE ANNUAL ICE HARVEST ONCE A MAJOR ADIRONDACK INDUSTRY
Ice harvesting was the leading industry during the winter months from 1906 to about 1922. The two principal markets for local ice were the New York Central Railroad and Utica Ice Company. Local businesses and resort hotels used up the balance of the supply. White Lake supplied the needs of the Utica Ice Co. A railroad spur ran out to Ice House Point alongside a huge ice house that supplied ice all year long, It employed up to 100 men during the winter and nine full time.
Old Forge and Raquette Lake supplied the NY Central with ice. Patrick Moynehan signed a contract with the NY Central to supply 20,000 tons of ice each winter, quota later raised to 50,000 tons. It was loaded directly into the rail cars on tracks adjacent to the lake. The ice was taken from Old Forge Pond with seven cars being loaded simultaneously. When 60 cars were loaded, Callahan would tell the men to go home and rest up for the next day. Rivalry between the crews produced a record 85 cars loaded in one day!
After the harvesters had exhausted the supply at Old Forge, the action moved to Raquette. Fifty railroad cars loaded per day, 5 cars at a time, was considered a good day. The cars were lined up on tracks where the cruise and dine vessel, WW Durant, is now moored.
Presently, Raquette Lake is the site of one of the last commercial ice cutting operations in the North Country. As soon as the ice reaches about 15 inches in thickness, the work begins. The ice field is cleared of snow and then the channel is cut. The actual cutting takes just one day and usually occurs in late February. Manager Jim Dillon says the ice blocks are put away in the annex and covered ( no sawdust these days). As the ice melts pumps push the water through pipes from the annex to the store where RL ice is used to cool the produce case and provide the air conditioning for the Tap Room. How long does it last? Jim says that depends on how hot it is in June and July. Generally, the ice lasts until about August 15. He also says if they had a bigger area to store the ice they could handle all the cooling units at the store and the Tap Room.
Great video - Thanks for sharing!
Haven't seen this since I was a kid (but with horses/mules). Cool that people are still doing this.
Thanks for taking the time to post this! That was very interesting. Do you know if at one time it was all cut by hand and taken away by horse drawn wagons? If so, what a job that must have been! I'm glad you followed the whole process through to the ice house. Anyhow, very interesting vid, thanks again!
i just read about it in wikipedia and now i see it how its done in life thank you!
Amazing
I would literally eat myself crazy on that ice and snow!!!
I❤ICE!!!
Nice video. We go to Raquette Lake every summer. Wish you included video of the ice saw in use and how all the blocks were cut in uniform size. Thanks.
Very interesting! I remember my grandfather telling me stories about how his family used to harvest ice from the local lake (no chainsaws used at the time). The horses would drag the ice up to the icehouse, where it would be stored for months by covering it up in sawdust. This slowed down the melting process considerably and would last them through the summer. I'm curious as to why people today still harvest ice since we have modern refrigeration methods now.
the ice from this lake is used as the coolant for the modern refrigerators and Air Conditioning. much more environmentally friendly.
Thanks for your reply!
This is a good description of how it was done a century ago, but no mention of why they are doing it this way in 2013.
+Landrew0 The grocery store in town still cools their chillers this way. They have an ice house, the ice melt water is circulated through the coolers in the store and the AC in the pub. Depending on how hot the summer it it keeps everything cool until August :) I have further details in the description of the video if you read at the bottom.
reminds me thousand years ago when we just use axe and spear to harvest the lake ice. and mammoth as a transport to deliver to the ice house.
Just curious what all the ice is used for...cool video and system you use and all the help...?
Heith Gagnon it is most likely tradition
The ice is used for old time refrigeration when there were no refrigerators were invented. Ice blocks were stored in large ice silos and kept until summer.
I wish I could have made it...
the oil is from the chainsaws that cut the ice *chain oil, along with and the conveyor bridge that carries the ice up to the truck *chain grease.... not all the "boats" in the summer
Humans may survive after all!
I should call my friend Kristoff about this.
The ice harvesters in Frozen are as good as these guys.