Cold As Ice

As Draper's egg cooperative prospered, farmers there found markets across America and used special ice-cooled railroad cars called Reefers, meaning Refrigerated Rail Cars, to deliver fresh eggs to cities as far away as New York City. These ice cars had roof hatches where ice was dropped into bulkheads at each end, and air vents circulated cool air around eggs and produce to keep them fresh even on the hottest summer day. Before electricity, ice was harvested from frozen lakes and rivers and stored in sawdust-filled warehouses for later use, and communities such as Salt Lake City, Evanston, and Logan had ice houses to refill passing trains. Ice blocks weighing up to 400 pounds required many men to move, and cars were refilled every 250-400 miles, with salt added to the ice at each stop to keep it cold longer. This ice-and-salt process was repeated at important rail junctions across the nation so deliveries would remain as fresh as possible. In the 1940's, electrical refrigeration units powered by rollers attached to steel rail wheels were developed; as a railcar moved forward, the rollers turned an electric generator that ran refrigeration units at each end of the car. This partnership between railroad companies and farmers' cooperatives allowed fresh goods to reach new markets and consumers across the nation and provided income to more Utah farmers.

Draper, Utah · United States