Monument record 2272/2 - Site of Ice House at Eaton Hall

Nineteenth century ice house associated with Eaton Hall. Formerly Grade II listed, now demolished and de-listed (as with the stable block, see 2272/3). Constructed of red brick, the corridor had flagstone floors and a tiled roof; the egg-shaped ice chamber had a domed brick roof and dished floor. The hall was demolished in 1981, the icehouse and stable block in the 1990s. For a long time, there were few ways of preserving food other than salting and pickling. From the 17th century, the idea of an Ice house was introduced to large estates. They were structures built to house blocks of ice to prevent them from melting. They were well insulated and partly underground. The ice was obtained from ponds and lakes frozen in the winter months. Sometimes fields were deliberately flooded by farmers to provide extra income.