The Cedar Falls Ice House Museum

Closed Until Further Notice Due to Flood Damage

What You'll Find Inside...

Blocks of "ice" are stacked as they would have been in the ice house with the tools used by the men who delivered ice to homes and businesses throughout the area.

Life-sized photos of two early ice men along with several different types of ice-boxes, a large two-horse ice wagon, original photos and an information panel that explains the process of cutting ice, help visitors to understand this unusual industry that existed in almost every town in America in the last half of the 1800's and early 1900's. A scale model of the ice house in the early 1920's is also featured.

The kitchen highlights an ice box with an "outside" door for ice deliveries, a coal range, pie safe, and cistern pump. An outhouse and other "conveniences" of that time show what life was in the early days of the 20th century.

A horse-drawn school bus, buggies and sleighs, a 1909 Reo and 1925 Ford auto are displayed along with early horse-drawn farm implements and historic items from early Cedar Falls businesses. Our newest addition to the ice house collection is a 1935 model B John Deere tractor.

Completed in 2000, an exhibit of early Cedar Falls businesses now surround the perimeter of the ice house. Visitors can stroll down Main Street and visit Dr. Theirman's office, the Diamond Bros. General Store, or take a seat in the Empress Theatre.

Two slide presentations have been produced by the Cedar Falls Historical Society Ice House Museum. They are available by contacting the office at (319) 266-5149.

History of the Cedar Falls Ice House

The Cedar Falls Ice House was built in November, 1921, by Hugh Smith, owner of the Cedar Falls Ice and Fuel Company. The first ice house had been built in this location in 1858 near the cabin site of Black Hawk County's first permanent settler, William Sturgis. 

The old wooden ice house was destroyed by fire on the night of October 22, 1921. On that night, Smith and his wife were attending a performance at the Cotton Theatre, (now the Regent Theatre). His son located Smith in an aisle seat and whispered, "Papa! The ice house is burning down!" Smith hurried to his place of business and watched the ice 
house go up in flames in less than an hour.

On October 24, 1921, The Cedar Falls Record reported: "An expert building engineer from Chicago is en route today on a telegraphic call from Manager Smith to assist him in drawing up plans for a reinforced structure to replace the old frame building." The community rallied to Smith's aid. On the Thursday following the fire, 200 volunteers cleared the rubble, and the footings for the new ice house were poured less than a week after the old house had burned down. A few days later the walls of the new building were started.

The new building was 100 feet in diameter with tile walls 30 feet high. The walls were made of hollow clay tile reinforced with steel ties between the layers of tile. The ice house had a capacity for 6,000 to 8,000 tons of ice.

Early on the morning of January 10, 1922, the first ice harvest for the new ice house on the Cedar River was begun. At the close of the 1922 harvest, carpenters assembled and raised the trussed double-pitched roof by using the top layer of blocks as a scaffold.

The building was used as an ice house from 1922 until 1934 when Hugh Smith lost his business and the property was taken over by the Cedar Falls Trust and Saving Bank. For a time the building was used as a livestock sales pavilion and later flooded for ice skating.

In 1938 members of the Cedar Falls Boat Club persuaded the city to purchase the building. Subsequently, the Club leased the structure from the city for use as a boat storage building for the sum of $1.00 per year. The Boat Club occupied the ice house until 1976 when the roof was deemed unsafe and the building condemned.

In November of 1976, the bicentennial Year, the members of the Board of Directors of the Cedar Falls Historical Society agreed unanimously that every effort should be made to preserve the old ice house for use as a museum. 

With the assistance of The Cedar Falls Daily Record, the Society launched a campaign which met with wide-based community support. The City allocated block grant money, and a successful fund drive saved this unique building.

In the summer of 1978 contractors put in a new cement floor and electrical system and made major repairs to the roof. The unusual umbrella styled roof is supported by one center pole and the outside walls of the structure.

The Ice House Museum opened to the public on June 24, 1979, and is operated by the Ice House Management Council which is responsible to the Board of Directors of the Cedar Falls Historical Society