Our first Refrigerator
Way back in about 1938 or 39 we got our very first electric refrigerator. Before that we had an ice box. That was a cabinet with shelves just like a fridge only at the top was a section which held a big block of ice. The ice would keep the ice box somewhat cool but not really like an electric refrigerator.We had to buy the blocks of ice from a truck which ran on a regular routine and delivered the ice to your house. They usually had big cards with pounds listed on them. If you wanted 10 pounds you put the 10 pounds side up, if you wanted 25 pounds you put that side up. You put the cards in a window so the ice man could see it and then he brought whatever amount you wanted and put it in your ice box for you.
You also had to put a pan underneath the ice box to catch the water from the melted ice. It came down from the ice section through a tube which came out through a hole in the bottom of the ice box.You had to make sure you emptied the pan before it got too full or you would have a mess on your floor.
Back to the new electric fridge. I think it was a GE. My Mother right away got on to the idea of making ice cream in the new fridge. She would mix up milk or cream, sugar, flavorings and sometimes fruit and put it in the ice cube trays and freeze it. She would stir it about two or three times while it was freezing, which made it smoother. The whole family really liked it except for me. I never cared for the home made ice cream. I always thought it was too sweet. But the rest of the family made up for what I didn't eat!
But I did like being able to get some ice cubes out for my water, pop, or whatever I wanted to drink. Now I can't imagine not having an electric refrigerator. I have an ice maker which is even handier. I can reach in and get one, two, three or how many ever ice cubes I want--much easier than having to get a whole tray of cubes out.
Hooray for progress! I hope we never have to go back to the olden days (actually, in some ways that might not be too bad of an idea!).
posted by kyra lafain @ 6/26/2008 12:30:00 PM
4 Comments:
Hey, you have sure changed about your taste for ice cream haven't you!!
Not Really. I still don't like homemade ice cream.
Grandma used to make chocolate ice cream that way when I was a kid. I considered that a wonderful treat! I'm very thankful for my icemaker, too. I remember trying to pull those levers up on those old metal ice trays. About half the time, when I finally got it yanked up, all the ice would go flying into the floor. And I don't know why, but I hated filling up ice trays and putting them back in the freezer. It's such a simple task, and it took all of 30 seconds, but for some reason, I despised doing it.
I hated filling ice trays too. My frig recently went out and I about drove myself crazy trying to get ice and water out of the door of the refrigerator I borrowed from the store, which didn't have ice and water in the door! We are all very spoilt, aren't we?! I love homemade ice cream and remember the homemade ice cream grandma made....of course, just about everything she made was delicious! nh
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