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NOONAN’S ICEHOUSE
Story contributed by Roberta Comstock
Typed by Linda Hayes
Pictures courtesy of Roberta Comstock & Ruth Davis
John H. Noonan with this LeRoi saw harvested ice in the area of Montrose and Galland, Iowa at the turn of the century.
The Irishman, Noonan, was a former river man who had been employed by the government on various canal and dam projects. In addition, he held a pilot’s license to navigate steam vessels on the Mississippi. When he left the government employ, the age-old profession of ice cutting was a natural choice.
Galland was the first sight of Noonan’s ice harvesting. There are time books still in existence, which record wages of this early time. Rates varied from 10 cents to 30 cents per hour determined by whether the laborer worked alone or had a team. This venture flourished until the building of the Keokuk Dam, which wiped out the Galland Canal.
Noonan then went to Montrose and established an ice business, which is still remembered by many in the community. A large storage house was located in the lower end of town by Horton Creek. A smaller building was also maintained at Noonan’s home to service the needs of customers. Pictures are now all that remain of both spots.
The
employees who filled the icehouse at Horton Creek worked many cold hours, as is
testified by the accompanying photo. As the story goes, it was Noonan himself
standing on one foot to warm the other. Ice was marked and sawed: spuds (metal
bars with tapered, sharp ends) pried the cakes apart; the, pike poles were used
to direct their movement. A conveyor belt carried the cakes into the icehouse
where they were layered with sawdust for insulation.
A dapple grey and black team pulled the ice wagon over the streets of Montrose or customer delivery. Cards were placed in the residential windows to indicate how much ice was needed. The driver used tongs to carry the cakes to the wooden icebox in the kitchen This ancestor of our present day refrigerator was wonderful thing indeed----if the housewife didn’t forget to empty the drain pan underneath!
On the commercial side, Montrose strawberries and grapes from Nauvoo were shipped by railroad in iced care to many destinations.
Health forced Noonan to retire in the late 1920’s. This decade also brought widespread mechanical refrigeration.
Various museums in our current time are keeping this old profession of ice cutting alive for new generations to see and understand. Iowans can be proud of an impressive display at Cedar Falls, which includes one of the few remaining icehouses in the century. This museum contains a very large collection of iced tools, an ice wagon and a restored ice scale.
Two residents of Cedar Falls, Professor Robert Hardman and Nancy Redfern have won national honors for their slide series on ice harvesting. This series uses a synchronous sound track. Groups interested in borrowing this presentation may contact the Cedar Falls Historical Society at (319) 266-5149.
So, this LeRoi ice saw and John Noonan contributed their bit for posterity. And, Old Threshers of Mount Pleasant is preserving another memory for future generations.
Companies—LeRoi—Milwaukee?
Gifford Wood—Hudson, New York. One of the largest companies to have made ice cutting equipment.
