A unique opportunity to visit an Icehouse which was built around 1786 - 1799 to store ice for Berwick's renowned salmon industry. Using ice was an innovation at this time as previously salmon had been preserved by either pickling or salting.
This icehouse was one of several built in Berwick in the late 18th and 19th centuries. The ice was used for packing fish, particularly salmon, in crates to be transported to London. It was sourced locally if the winter had been severe enough, but usually was imported from Norway. The blocks were carefully stored in layers with sawdust laid between the blocks to prevent them from freezing into a solid mass. Icehouses were still being used in the 1930s.
In the Second World War it was designated as an air-raid shelter, and later as a garage. It is a Grade II listed building that was restored by Berwick Preservation Trust.