This area is part of the Spruce Brook, which ultimately drains into the Cross River Reservoir. An area was dug out of the land around it, the brook was dammed up, and the dig filled with water. The water is very calm, with little current. During the winter, this would allow the surface of the pond to freeze relatively deeply. The ice would be sawn into sections joined to make ice blocks, and kept in an insulated ice house. By this period, trains had come in, and tin milk jugs would be loaded onto box cars with the ice blocks for shipment to New York City.
