Maine Amish Complete Ice Harvest (300,000 Pounds’ Worth!)
Amish in Unity, Maine recently completed their yearly harvest of ice. This ice is to be used in their ice houses for cooling throughout the coming year. Harvesting ice from local ponds is a common practice among the plainest Amish, though the Amish in this community don’t exactly fit the conventional definition of “plainest”.
From the report at centralmaine.com:
UNITY — A group of 30 Amish men and teenagers gathered Thursday for an annual effort to cut blocks of ice from a farm pond that were then stored in icehouses to keep produce cold for up to a year.
The labor-intensive work is normally done earlier in the winter, but farmer Stephen Smith said it was delayed by the unseasonably warm temperatures. They were able to complete the work ahead of the bitterly cold and gusty weather that moved into the region Friday.
The blocks were cut with chainsaws, retrieved and lifted with poles and tongs, and moved with a conveyor belt onto horse-drawn wagons to be distributed to icehouses. The estimated total was 300,000 pounds’ worth, or about 150 tons of ice. Smith says it’s meant for storing produce and other foods.
No idea if 300,000 pounds of ice is “a lot” or “a little”. But if I had to guess, I’d guess it’s probably neither, or rather, “just right”, in that they likely harvest about what they need each year, and did the same this year.
We’ve done a number of posts on this practice over the years, but I think this is the first one where the amount of ice was quantified. Ice harvesting is an activity that just “fits” with the perception of the Amish as living simply and off-the-land. Although most Amish don’t harvest ice and rely on other methods of cooling.
In these two posts featuring some nice photos by David Marvitz, we see separate harvests in an Amish community in Iowa with a bit more describing the process and showing the tools involved.
Orange gloves
I’m curious and surprised that they are wearing such bright colored orange gloves.
Is that maybe so that they can be seen better if they fall through the ice in their hands up?
Very Cool!
Erik, thanks for this very cool blog on Amish ice.
Thanks Jim, just trying to help everyone chill out with some cool stories here
Quite the accomplishment
Quite the accomplishment to harvest ice. Erik, How do you get so
much time off from your regular work to do all the Amish visiting?
Some wonder if you’re still selling books or maybe are partly
or fully retired?
Sincerely,
Brother Jeremy
Well this is kind of my regular work. I’m not selling books anymore – I last did that in 2007 in Pennsylvania. But I’m also definitely not retired 🙂
Time & Work Talents
Erik,
Would you tell us a bit about your “regular work” among the Mennonite
& Amish folk?
Thanks.
Brother Jeremy
Like button
Just where is this elusive like button? I’d click it for you if I could find it.
Thanks Anthony maybe I’ll find a place for that in the new site design 🙂
Is Stephen Smith Amish?
Is the farmer Stephen Smith referenced in the article and photograph Amish? Or do the Amish simply harvest ice from his pond? Reason I ask is I think I see a moustache on him, which is something I don’t think is ever found on an Amishman.
The moustache or maybe rather unshaven upper lip is one of the quirks for lack of a better word right now of the Amish in this community. See this for more and hat tip to Michael below for noting this https://amishamerica.com/an-unusual-amish-convert-story-in-unity-maine/#comment-120719
Moustaches
This subject has come up in the past and I believe a detailed explanation of the history of the Maine Amish moustache has been provided. Given the extreme sub-zero temperatures tonight and tomorrow in this part of Maine I suspect the extra facial hair will be much appreciated. I don’t think I have met an Amishman in Unity-Thorndike or Jefferson who did not have a “moose”tache. Maybe its a Maine thing.
Moustaches
This subject has come up in the past and I believe a detailed explanation of the history of the Maine Amish moustache has been provided. Given the extreme sub-zero temperatures tonight and tomorrow in this part of Maine I suspect the extra facial hair will be much appreciated. I don’t think I have met an Amishman in Unity-Thorndike or Jefferson who did not have a “moose”tache. Maybe its a Maine thing.