EPISODE 792 THE LAST ICE HOUSE IN MISSISSAUGA — will soon be a memory

alan skeoch

April 8, 2023

Lorne Joyce, historian, told me this decrepit outbuilding was once an ice storage barn

at the mouth of the Credit River. locks of ice were  Used by commercial fishermen, like his father, to keep

fish caught in nets as far away as the Main Duck Islands near eastern end of Lake Ontario.

The ice was cut by ice saws from the frozen surface of the Credit River just a bit

north of the current Port Credit bridge.  There are photos of this process held by the Mississauga

Library archives and by Heritage Mississauga.   

Perhaps this ancient ice house was caught in the lens long ago…SEE MY NEXT EPISODE 793

Who would want to save this building?  No one.  No place to put it.  So ugly

and time damaged that no one cares much about it.  And I recognize that fact.

So these photos may be the last record.

How was ice cut in winter saved for the hot days of summer?   I believe the blocks of

ice were jammed floor to ceiling in ice houses and covered with straw to inhibit melting.

Then I assume the blocks ice were reduced to a bed of chipped ice on which the

fish filets were placed  for  market.  If the mark was distant such as New York rhino

rhe chipped ice was also strewn on top.   That is a guess.

LORNE JOYCE OBITUARY