As Colorado formed as a state, so did the ice chunks cut from lakes, ponds, and streams. After all, residents needed a way to store perishables.
Certainly, at that time, it was not a product that was so easy to obtain. Here’s a brief history of the industry that grew with the state’s largest population:
1860: Olden’s Hotel and Restaurant on Blake Street in Denver advertises ice cream as “always on hand.” This begs the question: how does JR Alden keep cold snacks available all year round?
As Rocky Mountain News reported earlier this year, it’s probably from “a gentleman who’s been in the Boston ice trade for years.” He is said to be “preparing to store large quantities of that summer’s luxury in this city.”
Also this year, the paper wrote about Mr. Kershaw, “a longtime man at the Knickerbocker Ice Company in New York.” Reportedly, he hires men and horses to cut 8- to 12-inch blocks in a lake fed by the South Platte River.
The facility quickly burned down and was quickly rebuilt to meet the increasing demand. This is also evident from Kershaw’s promotion of a reward for someone “in the habit of breaking into our ice house.”
Late 1800s: In Fremont County, the ice industry is booming and has become a major source of shipments across the state line. Insulated ice houses have been built along Sells Lake and Grape Creek to supply Canyon City.
Early 1900s: Thomas Hanks and WE Doyle leased the shores of Monument Lake, then known as the State Reservoir. Hanks and Doyle Ice Co. uses Black Forest timber to build factories and harvest ice to ship to Denver and Pueblo.
“The day of the ice harvest, it was cold in the winter!” reads the description of the Lake Palmer Historical Society. “Since November 1, the monument has been able to plan the weather so that it is always in the range of 10 to 20 degrees below zero every night.”
During the winter weeks, more than 50 men are employed on horseback to cut sawdust and pack ice. According to the Historical Society, they earn him 40 cents an hour. Thousands of tons are stored and sold to homes and businesses.
1905: Hot summers push ice demand to $1 per 100 pounds in Denver, while Canyon Crystal Ice maintains 50 cents.
1921: Cañon Crystal Ice Co. was acquired by Sylvanus Hynes. Sylvanus Hynes replaced the horse-drawn ice wagon with a delivery vehicle that included three of his Model T Fords. Hines continues to establish ice-filled storage facilities for local farmers to store produce. Hynes is also developing a “Hynes Special” refrigerator.
1949: Hynes is sold to George Kochs who is sold to Earl Ready a year later. Ready Ice Co. has reportedly become a trusted primary supplier to the Colorado State Fair, Fort Carson, and the Air Force Academy, as well as parts of Kansas and New Mexico. Broadmoor uses ice to carve sculptures.
1981: Ready Ice Co. reportedly produces 100 tons of ice per day. It closed by the end of the decade, marking the end of the ice business in Canyon City.
Source: Canyon City Daily, Denver Public Library, Palmer Lake Historical Society
