Ice House South West Of The Grange

727/0/10005 GRANGE HILL 06-JUL-09 Ice House South West of The Grange

GV II The Icehouse at The Grange, Halesowen dates from the late C18/early C19 and is sited approximately 100 metres south west of the house. The icehouse is constructed of brick and, where revealed, this has a thickness of at least one foot. It is circular in plan and domed with a trapdoor opening slightly off centre. The walls of the chamber are tapered to form a slight egg shape overall. The north facing arched entrance tunnel to the chamber has been damaged and now has some modern brickwork to block the former opening and a metal cage covering. The icehouse is built in to a fairly steep incline, at the bottom of which is the surviving canal which appears to have been part of a decorative garden layout and which would have also supplied the estate with ice.

HISTORY Icehouses were introduced to England in the C17 and became common during the C18. There was considerable contemporary debate over the best type of icehouse in which to store ice, though the most common structures were built into the ground with north facing entrances, often surrounded by trees. Many were built with tapered walls which formed an egg shape, and this allowed the ice to pack harder as it gradually melted. It was normal for an icehouse to have a slightly domed base to allow for good drainage.

The icehouse at The Grange dates from the late C18/early C19 and is clearly labelled on an estate map of c.1830. Most icehouses fell out of use by the late C19/early C20 due to advances in refrigeration technologies and increased supplies of commercial ice. The Grange itself ceased to exist as a family home and became the Seth Somers Social Club in 1951.

SOURCES Tim Buxbaum, Icehouses, (Shire, 1998)

Reasons for Designation Decision: The Icehouse, The Grange is designated at Grade II for the following principal reasons: * The structure survives substantially intact alongside its original water source. * It has good group value with The Grange, listed at Grade II*.