A vintage icebox was a non-mechanical kitchen cabinet, the predecessor to the electric fridge, featuring a wooden exterior (often oak or maple) with a metal (tin/zinc) lining, hollow walls packed with insulation (sawdust, cork, straw). A large block of ice was placed in the top compartment, allowing cold air to sink and cool the food stored below, with melted water collected in a pan that needed regular emptying, a hallmark of early 20th-century food preservation.

Key Characteristics:

Construction: Hardwood cabinet (oak, maple) with inner lining of tin or zinc.

Insulation: Hollow walls filled with sawdust, straw, cork, or seaweed.

Function: Used large blocks of ice in an upper compartment to keep food cold.

Design: Often had strong metal clasps, a separate ice chamber, and a drip pan underneath for melted water.

Operation: Cold air descended, cooling food in lower shelves; the iceman delivered ice regularly.

Era: Popular from the mid-19th century until the rise of electric refrigerators in the 1930s and 40s.