You Know You Are Old When

[garry1p]

Anyone remember when the iceman delivered ice to the house to put in the ice cooler (refrigerator).

 

[scootr]

My dad who is 95 yrs old delivered milk by horse drawn wagon door to door. He was the helper, the runner I guess. People would leave out the empties and a note stating what they wanted left for them.

 

[sixdogs]

Anyone remember when the iceman delivered ice to the house to put in the ice cooler (refrigerator).

That's earlier than I recall but do remember the milk door that opened both from the outside and the inside so you didn't have to go outside to get the milk. Also recall the outdoor milk box where everyone hid the house key but rarely locked the door anyway.

I remember my mother pouring water into the coal furnace to put moisture into the house and I recall the coal truck delivering coal through the basement window into the coal room. That room was informally known as the "mouse room" since my mother saw one there once. No mice allowed.

I remember the junk man, or "peddler" that would pick up scrap items he could sell to make a $$ or maybe trade with people for their items and make a little extra. Cast iron frying pans were a good trade item. You could pick up a gift for someone if your luck was right.

There also was a produce man that sold fresh produce and a butter and egg man that made the rounds. Lots of activities in those days and a lot of work to run a household. Housewives ruled the roost.

 

[Fuddyduddy1952]

My grandfather next door and my Dad built house I grew up in in 1948, 97yo Mom still lives there. It has that double door about 2ft square from patio to utility room for milk deliveries. Another guy delivered eggs & butter. My grandparents house was built in 1940 and has a coal chute in basement we used to slide down as kids. That house was built with a very large tank in attic with a skylight over it. It's open, a gravity system filled by a spring powered by hydraulic ram in the creek. You could draw a glass of water and sometimes a dead wasp would come out!
My grandfather video taped construction company building a lot of it. I had a copy made to VHS years ago and gave it to the company, still in business and really appreciated it for historical records. Grandfather panned it around at one point and the neighbor was plowing a cornfield with oxen. I have a very old large farm bell by the door here given many years ago, the bell neighbor's grandparents used to call in their slaves. He had 2500 acres given to ancestors from the UK King at the time.

Lots of memories!

 

[not2old]

Anyone remember when the iceman delivered ice to the house to put in the ice cooler (refrigerator).

Yes, it was delivered by horse and wagon. The driver used to give us kids some ice to chew on. I also remember milk delivered the same way.

 

[stompybritches]

All I remember were female elevator operators. When my father asked why they were always ladies, my mother replied that it was too complicated for men to do.

about spit my corn muffin out on that one haha

 

[masseyrider]

Never had a milkman. We had it warm straight from the Mooo.
Did have a breadman. If I had the coin I'd buy a box of Hostess cupcakes. Second choice was Twinkies. I think he disappeared around 71-72.
I remember people converting to oil from coal.
My Old Man, ever frugal, got the coal from the local elementary school and High school.
It took him at least a week to haul it all home. We burned coal for probably 5 years on that deal.
An old out building about 20x25 was 5-6 feet deep in it.
Then he got more when a couple railcars went off the tracks when he worked there.
CN was going to send it to the dump just to clear the tracks. Pa slipped the truck drivers a little something and they brought it to the farm.
He burned coal until the 80s not to mention what he sold on the side.

 

[lman]

I remember my dad putting 10 gallon milk cans in water tanks inside the milkhouse to cool. I was too little for that heavy work. That didn't last long. Sold the milk cows and switched to beef(less labor). My sister's family now milk about 1500 and there's probably less physical labor there.

 

[MoKelly]

Anyone remember when the iceman delivered ice to the house to put in the ice cooler (refrigerator).

Yes!

To this day I call the refrigerator an ice box. I say “can you get me a beer from the ice box”?

My kids just don’t understand. Look at me like I’m nuts!

 

[stuckmotor]

During WWII we used to go around hunting up scrap iron and selling it to the local junk man, 1 cent per pound. You would be surprised what all you could buy for a few pennies back then.

My mother used to talk about buying a bag of candy for a penny during the depression. Now, I wish I'd asked her what sized bag.