Binnewater 2009-10 Trivia Results and Answers

A lot of people said that they saw the trivia questions and thought they were
interesting questions but very few people sent in their answer forms.  I think
the questions may have been a little too difficult.  In years past I got comments
that almost anything can be googled and that made the questions too easy.
This year I chose questions that could not be googled and it's now too hard.
Next year I will have to find a happy medium.   

We've decided all responders will get 2 free cases!

1)Binnewater Ice Company Inc. was first incorporated in what year?

B. 1910
Walter P. Crane and Edgar T. Shultis began operating
an ice business in 1904 and in 1910 they incorporated
and built the ice house on South Pine St.

2) Previous to the established business on 25 South Pine St. in Kingston, the original principals in Binnewater Ice Co. conducted an ice business by harvesting ice from which lake in the Kingston area?

C. Devil's Lake
When Walter and Edgar first began harvesting ice
it was from Devil's Lake on First Avenue in Kingston.
Devil's Lake can still be found on maps of the area.

3) Once Binnewater Ice Company was established on 25 South Pine St. in Kingston the ice source was changed to which of the Binnewater Lakes?

D. The Fifth
After building the ice plant on South Pine St., the ice was harvested from the fifth
Binnewater Lake. The fifth Binnewater is now know as Williams Lake. The ice was loaded onto freight cars (over 200 per season) and transported to Kingston for storage.

4) The ice business was so competitive in the 1930's & 1940's that an attempt was made to blow up Binnewater Ice Co.

A. True
At 1:00 AM Tuesday August 1, 1939 a nitro-glycerin explosion rocked South Pine St. and the surrounding area. No one was hurt and only minor damage occurred to the front corner of the building. Police chief J. Allen Wood announced that another bomb, which apparently failed to go off, was found inside the ice plant in the engine room. Although the crime was never solved it was believed that a competing ice company was responsible.

5) During the peak of Ice Harvesting season, when ice was cut from the lake and transported to the warehouse on South Pine St. in Kingston, how many were employed?

B. 80 men & 14 horses
During harvesting and during the hot summer season horses were used
extensively. A common sight throughout the city of Kingston was horse
drawn wagons of the pre-refrigeration era, delivering ice to city residents.

6) What refrigerant was used to cool the ice storage areas at Binnewater Ice Co.?

B. Ammonia
Ammonia was a common refrigerant in the mid 1900's. The ammonia was compressed, allowed to cool and then expanded. As a result of expansion the ammonia becomes very cold. It was then pumped in this cold state through pipes to areas of the plant that required refrigeration.

7) During the time period from the 1950's thru the 1990's which Hudson Valley crop benefited the most from Binnewater Ice Co?

D. Corn
Throughout this era, in the 90 degree summer heat, large tractor trailers would line South Pine St. and Greenkill Ave. waiting to have their loads of local sweet corn iced down. In the mid to late 90's more efficient technology replaced the use of 300 pound blocks of ice to cool the corn. Ice is no longer manufactured at the plant.

8) In the early days, in addition to ice, Binnewater Ice Co. also sold:

A. Washing Machines and Refrigerators
The early refrigerators were insulated boxes that homeowners would put their food in along with a chunk of ice. The companies that manufactured these refrigerators also made washing machines and they were sold at the ice plant also.

9) What products other than ice can now be purchased from Binnewater?

A. Spring Water in many different sizes
B. Rock Salt and Ice Melt
C. Solar Salt for your water softener
D. Coffee, Tea and Hot Chocolate
E. Firewood
F. All of the Above

In the 80's Binnewater began buying bags of ice cubes from
Leisure Time which was located in Sullivan County. Leisure
Time decided to get into the bottled water business and
eventually asked Binnewater if we would be interested in
selling spring water. Binnewater started by buying 40 or so
bottles and a few water coolers and began by offering them
to local businesses. It wasn't very long until there was a
demand for spring water by more and more businesses and
homeowners. The water business grew and eventually
required more attention from the staff than the ice business.
Distribution routes were developed and soon we were looking
for other products to put on our trucks. Currently all of the
products mentioned are delivered by our drivers throughout
Ulster, Dutchess, Greene and Columbia counties.

Questions