Glacières de Sylans, Former ice production facility in Le Poizat-Lalleyriat, France.
Glacieres de Sylans are the ruins of an ice factory by the lakeside with stone buildings and storage facilities from the 19th century. The site reveals how the landscape was used for harvesting and storing natural ice.
The operation began in 1864 and shipped natural ice to major cities including Paris and Lyon, as well as to Algeria. Production stopped in 1917 when artificial refrigeration made the natural ice business no longer necessary.
The site reveals how people harvested and stored ice from the lake before mechanical refrigeration existed. Workers cut ice blocks in winter and stacked them in specially designed buildings to keep them through the year.
A marked trail guides visitors around the old buildings, with information signs explaining how ice was cut and processed. Spring and autumn are the best times to visit, when the weather is pleasant and the paths are easy to walk.
The storage buildings used sawdust insulation to protect ice from melting, a simple but effective method. At peak times, 20 to 30 wagons loaded with ice left the site each day for distant markets.
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