This video was so interesting; imagine, you are the first family whose name is not Brock! How neat that the home was passed down through this family and then you and Jeanne enter the home. thanks for a most interesting history of the home and finally learning about the ice house in your yard. What a wonderful goal to rebuild a housing for your tractor and a new ice house! Love your ideas!
I think there's more to it. The piers would have supported the floor, but the floor they supported would have prevented the wooden doors from opening. That tells me there were at least two structures there: an earlier structure and a later one, that was built on top of the earlier one. I remember that you showed us in an earlier episode that the structure's cement shows it had, at least at one time, been built against an exterior wall. Also, it would have been unusual to have an ice contraption like that in a Southern Summer kitchen. The temperatures inside an average outdoor kitchen would have gone over 100 degrees on most days, even if it had a ton of windows. So I think it's probable that the Summer kitchen was in another building.
What a great episode including all the vintage photos. I learned so much from your well-researched video, a great history lesson. My uncle’s father owned an ice business in Fargo, N.D. I was 11 when they took me on a vacation to visit my uncle’s parents and I remember them talking about how they used to cut ice from the river and deliver it around Fargo. I listened to their stories in the summer of 1958 and here it is 2023 and for the first time I saw an ice box/refrigerator with blocks of ice in one of your photos plus the structure you uncovered in your yard. How lucky that family was that the two of you purchased their family home and continue to preserve and teach the history. 👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽
We had a concrete box like that in our barn for putting milk cans in until the milk truck came to pick it up - usually we shipped milk a couple of times a week. It didn’t have any ice until the coils froze over. It was deep all over except for a short concrete shelf for the shorter cans that were for the cream cans that came out of the separator (a machine that separates the milk from the heavy cream. We used to beg in the hot summers (yes we can have very hot summers in Canada) to put our swimsuits on and get into the milk tank. Alas, food hygiene before swimming in the milk tank. Shortly after that bulk shipping came along and my Dad didn’t have enough cows to be able to afford putting in a bulk tank. So we sold all of our cows. It broke our hearts to see them go.
My mom and I have enjoyed all of your videos, and after eagerly awaiting this one, it did not disappoint! Absolutely fantastic job! We so appreciate the care and effort you've put into the history itself, and the way you've presented it for everyone to enjoy. The photo documentation was amazing, and the entire video was very engaging. Looking forward to seeing the ongoing restoration! Thank you for sharing this journey with everyone! :)
Of all the things I thought it could be, an ice box was never a thought. Extremely interesting. So glad you’re giving so much care to a grand old home.
I guessed correctly! I am a fan of older homes and the history around them. Houses predating modern central cooling often had outdoor kitchens because homes in the South were designed to be as cool as possible, and cooking required burning either coal or wood. My family had a homestead that burned down inside of Yosemite before I was born. They had a summer kitchen alongside the house. And my aunt had a small house in the same area that had a breezeway between her summer sleeping quarters and the kitchen. This was a common design element of homes predating electricity and modern cooling methods.
How neat that your family had a homestead inside Yosemite! We spent a few years in CA but the year we tried to go to the park, they shut it down due to fires.
This was just fascinating! Thank you for putting in all the work that is involved with researching all the history. Hope all is going well with college too.
How exciting is this!?? 🎉😊 What a marvelous intro to the video. I love that song, yes, I know it well, and all the old photos are just exquisite! 😍 What a blessing it is to know the history of this place; YOUR HOME! Thanks for sharing, dear friends. 🌲Vancouver, Washington🌅💐💖
Well worth the time investigating. I had no idea the home was owned by only one family till you! Hopefully pictures will surface of the out buildings. Bet Jeannie could do a wonderful “Wall of History” with the family photos.
I must apologize for being 3 days late in finding out this awesome news. When I subscribed I hit the bell to be notified for everything but Utube failed me there. Anyway I’m so thrilled to know those structures of brick once was a ice house. That is awesome. Think about it… that was there outside kitchen. I’m amazed of the history of your home. You n Jennie are the second owners to this house after all these years it’s been standing. What a honor that is. I also think it’s a great idea to build your tractor shed but to rebuild the kitchen with many of the tools they used. I just love it! I’m sure it wasn’t easy for you both to find all the history on your house but I bet it left you totally amazed. Gosh, how I love history n you both are so blessed to have this true beauty of a Victorian house. How I envy you. I sure hope many people out there who live in much older houses will seek the knowledge n history of their house. There’s just too many being torn down today n it’s so sad. Those houses are part of history our lives. Thank you Mike n Jeanne for sharing this with all of us. PS. I would of never guessed that those stack of bricks were once a ice house. I wasn’t even close to what I thought. ♥️♥️♥️😊👍👍👍🌟🌟🌟
Brilliant to hear, finally, what 'the mystery structure' was for. I remember visiting an ice factory in the south of France when we were kids, in the late sixties and early 1970s, on holiday. We would buy a large block, and stick it in a portable ice box to keep our food and drinks cool (on our speed boat) for the day! The factory was amazing, fairly ramshackle, but effective. I don't know when/if it finally went out of business, it may even survive as an icecream business?
Oh my, I love it. I love History and now you own a big part of southern history. I am so glad to know what the structure was and how you can give it new life. Best of luck.
Thank you for solving the mystery of that intriguing structure! So interesting! Reminds me of my dad who, as a young man in Quebec,had a job cutting blocks of ice out of lakes.
Wow!!! Great show!! I have been waiting for this one!!! Loved every moment! Thank you to the Brock family for this great home!! Thank you for all your work on the history of this house. Great story! ❤❤❤
@@1834RestorationHouse I truly did! I hope you do more on the history of your home/neighborhood/town. As a genealogist, I thought it gave a great history of the area, the family and the town. Great job!
Finally, the mystery is solved. I've never seen anything like it before. You really are lucky to have that piece of history. The whole video was worth the wait. Appreciate you sharing it!😊 ❤️🤍💙
This was such a fascinating video! I loved hearing about the previous owners and the history of the town. I am so happy the house is in your hands as the first non-family owners because you are such excellent caretakers. It was exciting to learn the purpose of the mystery structure and led to us looking up other videos on early refrigeration :) Thanks for taking us along on your journey, friends!
We're so glad you enjoyed it! The old timers talked about the days when the ice man would come around, first in a horse drawn wagon and later by motor truck.
@@1834RestorationHouse We saw that in the videos we watched about ice boxes. One showed that children used to follow the ice truck around hoping to pick up fallen ice chips as treats ;) I had never realized how revolutionary ice was since we take it for granted here in the U.S.
I really enjoyed this. I did not guess it was an icehouse, but I have heard of ice houses, and my father talked about the icebox many times. He actually called the refrigerator the icebox most of the time. LOL
What a wonderful vlog about the mystery structure 🥰 thank you and I look forward to a new build. The one picture with the trees around the home was beautiful. I’m sure they were cut for a good reason. Maybe they became a danger to the roof especially in bad weather season or squirrels getting in like your little raccoon friend 🥴 🤷♀️ See y’all soon
Been waiting to know what the mystery structure has been for so long. And we got even more than that in this episode. And to think, you’re not only going to restore a historic structure that we now know it’s original function, but one also from one of the original 13 colonies. Glad finals went well. In college, it took me multiple semesters just to get to the class that would allow me to transfer to university.
Love it!!! I am so glad you found out! 11:55 - I totally agree. Preserving our history is very important (and fun, in my opinion… :-). Though it is difficult at times, it often yields great results!
Fantastic video ,we were all ready to find out what it was .And of course now that you told us it makes perfect sense! I enjoy your videos so very much thank you!
Well worth waiting for!! We live in a village yhat once had a mill 9the dam and millwheel are still there, though the mill is gone 0, a smithy, and a store, plus other small businesses. Our own house was built circa 1895, and we still have the old, restored outhouse@
That was so interesting! When I saw replies about it being an ice house, I was thinking it couldn't be because it's not IN the ground. However your explanation was informative and I learned something new; how an ice house worked like an ice box.
Glad to hear that you are preserving the ice house. My guess was that it had been a well house. You gave a very well put together history of the house and it's previous inhabitants. Thanks!
Now, I have to say, that I am hoping the rebuild of the exterior kitchen will not happen, until after the restoration of the main house? I have been waiting, since day one, to see the main rooms, the parlor, the dining room, the hall and staircase, - well, all the rooms, really - get restored back to former glory. The woodwork, floors, wallpapers, where needed. But also maybe apropriate chandeliers and perhaps even some furnishing of the rooms?
Absolutely, an extremely fascinating video! I thoroughly enjoyed learning about your home’s history and the mystery structure. Thank you both for taking the time to do all of the research. One of the wedding dresses reminded me of my own wedding dress. A dear neighbor of mine made it for me. A childhood dream of mine that came true. (I kept the dress and got rid of the ex. LOL) I was married in an old Victorian home and had a high tea reception. It was a beautiful unique event. I will always cherish. 😊
What a fun video! Thank you so much for sharing the information about your house. How interesting to go back and see what it was like back when it was built, and discovering the history over the past 120 or more years. It really must have made you feel connected to the family that lived there before you. I think it's awesome that you're going to rebuild some of the out buildings and reconstruct the outside kitchen as well. How fun that will be! I can't wait to see the videos for that. Thank you for putting together and sharing such a wonderful video! 😊
@@1834RestorationHouse That would be amazing! Oh the stories you would hear! I do think it's neat you were able to find out as much as you did. It's fun to go back and learn the history of something from long ago. I know you both must have been excited each time you discovered something new. Maybe there will still be more information to discover. You never know!
Thank you so very much for all the research and work you put into uncovering the history of your home, it’s nice to know a little of the background of the area you live in. Ice House, who would have thought! Love your idea to rebuild some of the historic out buildings, will follow your endeavours with great interest and admiration. 😎🇦🇺
Quite a fascinating history of your house, and thanks for the "reveal" of the Mystery Structure! The Summer kitchen makes sense, since a lot of Southern homes had them; also the age of the house being more 1880s--by 1901 many finer homes (such as this one) had central heat, vs. fireplaces in every room--steam/HW heat came along somewhere in the late-1800s for most larger homes...A family home of my wife's relatives, built in 1868-72 (in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, known as the Harlow House), actually had a rather ingenious furnace set-up, consisting of an enormous brick structure in the basement, w/ a nine foot-long firebox, and ductwork leading to first floor rooms, w/ floor grates for heating upstairs. Of course, being in the South, there may not have been so much call for central heat...Looking forward to further adventures! I also enjoyed the opening music...made me feel oddly nostalgic, as if I'd "lived another life in that era"...What's the name of that song?
Great video! I so enjoyed the history of your beautiful house and outdoor kitchen ice house. More please of any history you have of your home. Blessings.
Wonderful video! I had typed something longer out then lost it. 😞 So I'll just say that you're right - once you hear it, an icehouse makes perfect sense! ❤
Great detective work and the history of your town is interesting as well. Not to nitpick, but I believe there is plants growing in your front gutters & would you give an update on your neighbours on their restoration project.
Yes, we saw those while editing the video! That's one more reason why gutter guards are a bad idea. :-) We'll inquire about the other house next time we see them.
The house where we spent many weekends when I was growing up had no electricity, and we had an ice box. A cake of ice would last 4 or 5 days, so we had to eat all the perishable food by then!
Absolutely fascinating! Our farmhouse in Ohio has an outdoor kitchen that originally was built over an open spring that flowed around a cement structure for refrigeration. It was all sealed up by the time we lived there. We had an elderly neighbor who watched the farm being built in the early 1900's. Truly appreciate the time and effort in your videos.
I must admit i was wondering if it was a cool room related item but hearing how you researched the history was truly remarkable. Mike and Jeannie you are people who really make restoration of old properties interesting and totally worthwhile. Well done indeed and as always, the very best wishes on the further endeavors with your wonderful house.
Very enjoyable to listen to the history of were you live and of how things were done back in the good old days i say that as i think I'm out of time in relation to now and were i think i should have been LOL thank you for sharing all the best Budo 🍺🤠👍
I can just see Jeannie using the outdoor kitchen in the future( with maybe a couple of modern updates- like a gas supply) for her food canning exploits . There is potential to write your own photographic building reconstruction and canning cookbook there! Those videos seemed to be really popular with your viewers. It sure is great to finally know what the mystery structure is. Thank you :)
You did it! This history is so interesting! And sadly, so many old structures are gone. When I first started working in Downtown San Diego in the late 1980s, the building for the Union Ice Company still stood on Broadway. Already derelict, it caught fire, and was eventually torn down for a parking lot. :( We still have a kitchen cabinet with slat shelves; the lower portion is missing, but I'm sure it was a 'cooler' like my grandparents had in their Los Angeles home. My Grannie remembered when blocks of ice were delivered from upstate NY to her family's brownstone apartment in the Bronx. One of her favorite things was to go down and feed carrots to the horse that pulled the ice man's wagon. This would have been about 1908. These links to the past are important, and I'm excited to see you re-build a tractor shed and outdoor kitchen. For kids these days (don't I sound old, lol), things like outdoor clotheslines, rotary dial telephones, and the milkman who put bottles in the little milk door in the side of your house are something they've never heard of. We have some weird pavement paths out back that just end. They used to go to the orchard, which is now covered with apartments built in the 1960s.
Your intro and music was lovely, It was a great idea!❤️ this video was one of the best and I enjoyed very much. How are the flowers planted around the veranda doing?
That is fascinating that you want to recreate what used to be there. Learning the history and the family that lived there was interesting. So what year do you think your home was built? At this present moment I'm building a brand new home. I really wish I could have a home that has the character, workmanship and style of way back when. Nobody knows how to do that work anymore. Where I live there aren't very many older homes here to restore. Therefore, I need a modern home and I have to do with what I have available.
I thought it was a refrigerator icebox and a kitchen. I knew from research that most 18 hundreds home especially in the south didn’t have kitchen inside the home because summer it was to hot and some had kitchens under the house to cook in the winter.
@@1834RestorationHouse I love old houses. People back in the day where ingenious. They thought of so many wonderful Inventions like the air conditioner and wash machine
Have you considered getting the Brock house listed on the historic register? Does South Carolina have a vigorous historical preservation policy that you might be able to take advantage of? Love what you two do and how you think!!! Thank you!!!
