West Alabama Ice House

What the hell is an icehouse, exactly? Before 1940, most Texans (and especially county folk) had an icebox, not a refrigerator. To keep their perishables cold, they had to regularly restock their ice. A simple enough concept. But where did the ice come from? Usually, it was cut in large blocks from frozen lakes and rivers up north, then transported south via railroad. In the case of Texas, ships carrying ice from Maine would often unload in Galveston Bay.

Ice would then get transported to local icehouses, simple shacks often made of corrugated tin or steel that would store the ice and insulate it with sawdust or straw. A 30-by-100 ft. icehouse could store 2,700 tons of ice.

These shacks started dotting the countryside. They were cool in the summer and an ideal place to hang out. Owners decided that, besides ice, they could also sell cold-kept goods. Butter, milk, Coca-Cola, etc. But also stuff like ammo, cigs, and beef jerky. And if dad is going to drop in for some buckshot, might as well sell him beers too so he can get tanked like an armored division. This is where the modern icehouse can trace its roots to.

"Some bars are icehouses without saying so, while many self-proclaimed icehouses are not icehouses at all," pens Houston dive bar expert John Nova Lomax in a 'Texas Highways' piece. Some say there are two main qualifiers for being a true icehouse: It had to have sold ice at some point, and it has more outdoor drinking space than indoor drinking space. If not, there's a good chance it's a patio bar or dive bar that stuck "icehouse" in its name.

While other requirements are up for debate, the storied West Alabama Ice House fits the bill perfectly. It's been in business since 1928, making it the elder statesman of the Houston icehouse scene. It's a wide-open space where the breeze blows easy. A blank canvas, where people of all varieties paint their character upon it.

It's been in the Markantonis family since 1986 and there are no plans to change anything—unlike Houston itself. So if you're looking to see what a real icehouse looks like, look no further. Just swing through the West Alabama Ice House and join the party.