knowlton ice museum

This is not a small local museum like the ones you find in small towns. It is a "one-of-a-kind" museum. If you search for museums about ice harvesting in the US, this is the only result. Ice harvesting was done in the northern US and most harvesting came from the upper Great Lakes because of the quality of the water. Ice was shipped all over, including to the southern US, the Caribbean, India, etc. It was one of the major industries in the US at its peak.So if you want to see a detailed history of ice harvesting, this is probably the only museum in the US with displays like this. it is unique.It is not a display of a few items left over from the owner of an ice company. It is a vast collection of well preserved and maintained ice equipment. Knowlton was a delivery man for milk and other goods before he went into the ice business,He was an avid collector with pride in his collection. He has restored one of the earliest ice wagons, a Silverwood's milk truck, a model T and other vehicles. The collection contains ice boxes, from the earliest ones to those common in the 40's and 50's. It contains a kitchen of that time period, and too many other displays to mention. There are photos and news clippings about Port Huron, large displays of interesting facts and pictures, and several interactive displays.The museum was developed by Knowlton and taken over by his family who have lovingly and with high standards turned it into a 10,000 square foot display. Despite its size and professionalism, it is family run and personal and inviting. For example, a sign asks you not to enter the kitchen display, but there are no ropes to keep you out. The sign simply asks you not to enter the kitchen because Mom is buy. It is so family friendly.There is a short professionally done video at the beginning with actual footage from ice harvesting operations as well as a brief history of ice harvesting and the modern ice-producing factories of today.This museum needs to be seen and appreciated. For many of us, it brings back memories of horse drawn wagons making daily milk deliveries and twice-weekly ice deliveries for the ice box. But Knowlton started the Party Ice Company. As the need for ice for ice boxes declined and railroad cars no longer needed ice, he saw the need for ice in service stations to sell for parties... hence the name "Party Ice Company". So I guess there are memories for everyone. :)Who could have believed that ice would be so interesting?

Great museum tells all about the history of ice making from the St. clair river in the early years to present. There are a lot of historical artifacts to see. Well worth the trip.

The admission price was just great. The patron made us feel very welcome and she was very knowledgeable about how the museum came about. There is a short film you watch first and it was excellent and my husband and I learned a lot about haversting ice. There is lots to see in the musuem and it brought back lots of memories for us baby boomers.

Lots of GREAT local History ,Worth the look .Very authentic .Also see the POrt Huron Museum on Court Street ,very interesting Remember THomas Ediison grew up Here!! Port Huo\ron has a vivid past!!

WOW! WOW! and WOW! First of all, the price of admission was fabulous. Second, it's great for families with kids. In fact, there is something for everyone. Even if you are not a museum goer, it is definitely worth going to. There is a lot to see and a lot to learn. It was a great experience to learn about how important ice was. We absolutely loved this place and highly recommend it. It was said it is the only museum anywhere that depicts an industry that was once one of the largest industries in the U.S.A. Plan on about an hour to go through.

There are things that even the people of Port Huron don't know. The history of this area as an ice harvesting era was huge! And there's more than just ice harvesting history stuff at this museum. They have an antique auto and truck collection, doll and buggy collection, travelling exhibits (we saw the Hanky and Crazy Quilt Exhibit), milk industry including a Twin Pines Milk Truck. The people are friendly, too!

The ice museum is a must see if you are into history. The museum walks you through a time before refrigeration and how important "natural" ice was back in the day.

This was a total surprise hit with my family. We learned a lot of history about ice-making. The museum has a ton of stuff including old ice trucks, ice-boxes, early refrigerators and even a huge antique doll collection.

Yes thank you so much for your interest in this wonderful ice museum. In addition to the regular business hours keep in mind the family of the ice museum will open it anytime by calling to schedule a special appointment! If your interested they will come down and open it up! They do many special appointments for group tours any day!

Interesting place to visit. Different items to see and review on how things worked in the old days and now. History at it's best. All kinds of tools to view. Facts presented by owner are very informative.