Draft:The Ice House (Flagstaff, Arizona)



The Ice House, at 201 E. Birch Ave. in Flagstaff, Arizona, is a large one- and two-story commercial building of stone construction. It was built in 1946 and was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2009.

It was built by or for the Babbitt Brothers to be a large ice house for manufacture and storage and sale of ice.

Its walls are built of Kaibab Limestone and it is claimed, in its NRHP nomination, to be the only such building in Flagstaff.



"The Ice House is significant under Criterion A because of its role in contributing to early commercial growth in Flagstaff. The Ice House was the first commercial building in Flagstaff after World War II, and the largest of its kind after the post office was built ten years previous. It was a ground-breaking achievement for the Babbitt Brothers who were beginning to make their mark on Flagstaff's economy, and quickly vaulted them into the prominent ranks of local developers. The Ice House's primary operations revolved around ice manufacturing, storage, and sales. It became an important stopping point for trucks transporting goods across Route 66 and for trains passing through town. Truckers and train engineers would stop to load their trucks or railcars with ice before continuing their trips across eastern Arizona or across the hot desert of western Arizona and southern California. In this sense, the Ice House served as a regional hub for ice-related services. The building possesses additional significance under Criterion C for its method of construction, type of materials used in its walls (Kaibab limestone), and its sheer mass. The property's period of significance lasted for ten years, from 1946 to 1956, until being turned into a grocery and later a distribution warehouse. The Ice House was important locally as it helped guide Flagstaff s commercial development and it also impacted interstate commerce."