Spring Houses Kept Food Cool Long Before Ice

Mamie Jones wrote that long before artificial ice was available, people in and around Shelby relied on spring houses to keep food from spoiling. These were small structures built directly over or beside flowing springs, so that cold spring water could circulate beneath shelves or stone troughs. Milk, butter, meat, and other perishables were placed in crocks or containers and set where the cold water would keep them cool.

She explained that where a spring house was not available, families sometimes used running branches or placed food in containers lowered into wells, using the naturally cool temperature underground. These methods, she noted, were used for generations and made it possible for people to live without ice until it became available much later.

Source: Mamie Jones.