Today's Tidbit... Football on Ice

It's easy to take ice for granted, but its ready availability is relatively new in human history. Almost every household today has an electric refrigerator and freezer that automatically dispenses ice or allows us to make it the old-fashioned way, using trays. Likewise, almost every store and gas station that offers beverages also sells bags of crystal clear ice, so ice is widely available to those of us with a cold tooth.

The ancients cut and stored winter ice, and that approach remained the case until early in the 20th century. By then, significant businesses cut ice in northern climes, shipped it in insulated ships to locations closer to the equator, and made lots of money. They also stored it in ice houses in northern areas for use in warmer months.

Machines capable of commercial ice-making arrived before WWI. Mechanically produced ice competed with lake or river ice for several more decades, with much of it devoted to keeping home and commercial ice boxes cool.

Ice and football have connected on multiple occasions. An important connection came through Red Grange, whose summer high school and college job involved delivering ice in his hometown, Wheaton, Illinois. Grange, who became known as the Wheaton Iceman, retired from the ice delivery business soon after becoming the first athlete to have his number retired.

Red Grange carrying ice in Wheaton (Illinois football)