Ice Saw

Object/Artifact

-

Saugatuck Douglas Historical Society

On display in the 2019 SDHC Museum exhibit "Then and Now": Cutting Ice circa 1925 Ice cutting was long, hard work but necessary to supply the town with natural refrigeration. George Ricker and others accomplished the task with a large handsaw. The ice blocks were cut from what is now Wade’s Bayou on the Kalamazoo River in Douglas and carted to the local icehouse.
On display in the 2019 SDHC Museum exhibit "Then and Now"

Cutting Ice circa 1925 Ice cutting was long, hard work but necessary to supply the town with natural refrigeration. George Ricker and others accomplished the task with a large handsaw. The ice blocks were cut from what is now Wade’s Bayou on the Kalamazoo River in Douglas and carted to the local icehouse.

Name/Title

Ice Saw

Entry/Object ID

2024.22.66

Description

Long saw with curved extension that attaches the double-peg handle.

Context

See 2023.11.42 for photo of ice saw in action.

Collection

Objects: historical artifacts

Cataloged By

Winthers, Sally

Acquisition

Accession

2024.22

Acquisition Method

Found in Collection

Dimensions

Width

7 in

Length

70 in

Dimension Notes

handle is 12 inches long

Location

Building

Garage, History Center

Relationships

Related Person or Organization

Person or Organization

Morgan Ice Company

Interpretative Labels

Label Type

Object Label

Label

Ice Saw A saw that cuts through 18 inches of ice needs to be quite long! The person doing the cutting would pull the saw almost completely out of the ice and then lean over to push the saw handles to the surface of the pond or river. The harvested ice was stored until summer by packing it in sawdust from the local sawmills. Property of the Saugatuck-Douglas History Center

Create Date

June 15, 2024

Update Date

June 15, 2024