From the Royal Gorge Regnional Museum and History Center:
With the cold weather we’ve had recently, we’ve certainly had our fair share of ice. On cars and roads, it is a fairly unappreciated part of winter. But as soon as summer comes along, we’re all grateful to have ice in our drinks and in our freezers. The process of acquiring ice was originally much harder than it is today. Before the ice industry took off, perishable food was usually kept underground in areas such as cellars or in ice houses.