On a cold Saturday in February, hardy adults and kids came to the Hanford MillsMuseum Ice Harvest and stepped out onto the frozen Mill pond. They cut ice using vintage ice saws, and hauled it by sled to the Ice House. The ice blocks have been kept there for five long months, packed in wood shavings from the Museum’s sawmill.
“Before refrigeration, here at Hanford Mills and in most rural communities, ice would be harvested and stored until it was needed to keep food cold in the warmer months,” explains Liz Callahan, executive director of Hanford Mills Museum. “Farmers would use the ice to keep milk and other agricultural products cold, and also sell ice.”
So, as the Museum demonstrates this once-essential process, what is the best use of all that ice? How about making creamy and delicious ice cream? At the Independence Day Celebration this July 4th, Museum visitors can enjoy free samples of ice cream, made on a steam-powered churn and chilled with ice from the Ice Harvest.
The photos show Museum interpreter Becca Hotaling waiting for the next layer of ice to stack at the Ice Harvest Festival, and then, in a photo from this week, uncovering a solid block of ice in the Ice House. There’s plenty left to make ice cream.
Just-made ice cream is a highlight of the festival, which also features traditional music with Henry Hermann and the Catskill Mountain boys, guided tours, frog jumping contests, a Holiday Pop-Up Farmers’ Market (see related article on the Watershed Post), a kids’ fishing derby, sack races, blacksmithing demos, and lots of family-friendly fun. Tours include water-power demonstrations featuring the 1926 Fitz Overshot waterwheel, and steam-power demos with the steam boiler and steam engines.
Museum members and all kids 12 & under receive free admission. See the full schedule of events at http://www.hanfordmills.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/HMM-Independence-Day-2013-Program.pdf
For directions and additional information, please visit www.hanfordmills.org
