The annual ice harvest at the Thompson Ice House in South Bristol, planned for Sunday, Feb. 15, has been postponed due to expected inclement weather.
The decision was announced on the Thompson Ice House Preservation Corp. Facebook page early Friday morning. The popular event will be rescheduled, but a new date has not been determined.
The event offers a rare opportunity to witness an ice harvest, a common event in the days before refrigerators. The Thompson Ice House was once a thriving business, a place for homeowners to buy ice for their ice box.
Large crowds typically gather to participate or watch as volunteers cut large blocks of ice from the pond behind the ice house.
Locals and visitors of all ages use antique tools to cut the blocks and move them along a narrow channel in the ice, up a wood ramp, and into the historic ice house.
The nonprofit Thompson Ice House Preservation Corp. manages the Thompson Ice House, a working museum dedicated to the methods of traditional ice harvesting in South Bristol. For more information, visit www.thompsonicehouse.com..
