Natural Refrigeration

In olden days refrigeration was achieved by natural means
such as the use of ice or evaporative cooling. In earlier times, ice was either:

1.  Transported from colder regions,
2.  Harvested in winter and stored in ice houses for summer use or,
3.  Made during night by cooling of water by
   radiation to stratosphere.

In Europe, America and Iran a number of icehouses were built
to store ice. Materials like sawdust or wood shavings were used as insulating
materials in these icehouses. Later on, cork was used as insulating material.
Literature reveals that ice has always been available to aristocracy who could
afford it. In India, the Mogul emperors were very fond of ice during the harsh
summer in Delhi and Agra, and it appears that the ice used to be made by
nocturnal cooling.

In 1806, Frederic Tudor, (who was later called as the "ice
king") began the trade in ice by cutting it from the Hudson River and ponds of
Massachusetts and exporting it to various countries including India. In India
Tudor’s ice was cheaper than the locally manufactured ice by nocturnal cooling.

The ice trade in North America was a flourishing business. Ice was transported
to southern states of America in train compartments insulated by 0.3m of cork
insulation. Trading in ice was also popular in several other countries such as
Great Britain, Russia, Canada, Norway and France. In these countries ice was
either transported from colder regions or was harvested in winter and stored in
icehouses for use in summer. The ice trade reached its peak in 1872 when America
alone exported 225000 tonnes of ice to various countries as far as China and
Australia. However, with the advent of artificial refrigeration the ice trade
gradually declined.
Good luck....