While walking through woodland, in an area with a vast rural industrial history i came across a gated tunnel.
staring into it, i could see a long dark tunnel. and then nothing.
Taking a grid ref, when home i opened up my link to the National Library of Scotland, they have a wonderful resource for comparing modern, with historic maps.
Finding no reference, a number of local history websites provided me with an answer
The Georgian Ice House
Ice houses were very important before fridges and freezers were invented – they would provide estates with ice which they could use to store food and make special desserts for guests of the nearby mansions. Imagine the most elaborately decorated jellies created in metal moulds, decorated with fruits from the kitchen garden.
There may have been several functioning ice houses on the Estate. Workers cut and collected the ice from the frozen lake in winter and cattle or heavy horses would have dragged it in carts or sledges to the ice house. It was then lowered underground and insulated with straw to stop it from melting.
How They Worked
Insulation: The ice blocks were tightly packed and heavily insulated with straw, sawdust, or bracken. A drain at the base allowed meltwater to escape so the remaining ice stayed solid
Construction: They were typically deep, subterranean pits constructed with thick brick or stone walls. Being underground and shaped like a dome or egg helped maintain a naturally cool temperature.
Collection: During the winter, ice was cut from nearby frozen lakes or rivers and hauled into the chamber.
It’s oddities like this that make my day, it sparked an interest, and a new found knowledge of something lost in time.
We here at Everything Awesome can arrange days out that will generate some equally awesome memories.