Paul Heaney is well-known as a butcher and businessman in Galway. He is also noted for his knowledge and stories about his native place. Paul remembers the old Ice Factory that was located near the entrance to the old Persse Distillery on Nun’s Island. It was in existence until at least the early 1960s. While the factory was quite large, there was only one man employed there. One of the main rooms was fitted out with racking, between which were placed large blocks of ice. These were about one-foot square and three feet long. The factory provided an important service in addition to its production of ice for fishing trawlers, hotels and other hostelries. It was also used by all the butchers in Galway for storing meat over weekends. At the time butcher shops were not equipped with fridges and this would have caused problems without the services of the Ice Factory. The meat needed to be kept as cold as possible to ensure its freshness, particularly during summer. He remembers that there was a very strong smell of ammonia on the premises. It was a common sight on Saturday evenings to see butchers wheeling their handcarts towards Nun’s Island. The meat was then stored between the ice blocks over the weekend. Then on Monday mornings, the convoy of butcher’s handcarts made the return journey to collect their meat. Once the meat was removed from the protection of the ice, it was important to ensure a quick sale to the consumers.
