A Rare Photograph
This stunning photograph shows two young women delivering ice in 1918.
It was September 16, 1918 and the First World War was at its tailend.
With many American men sent to the battlefield, women stepped up to perform jobs previously done only by the former.
These included heavy work.
Case in point, delivering blocks of ice following what were called ice routes.
Between the early 19th century and after WWI, long before refrigerators became commonplace in every home, the natural ice trade began and icemen - those who went around selling and delivering ice from wagons, carts, or motor-trucks everyday - were a common sight.
Shortly after, the natural ice trade began to be overtaken by production of ice through refrigeration cooling systems and plant ice.
This historic and rare photograph was found in the National Archives.
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Story Sources: @ fair use
National Archives, Records of the War Department General and Special Staffs
https://www.lomography.com/magazine/314806-behind-the-picture-girls-delivering-ice-1918