As record-breaking temperatures and severe heat waves become the new normal, air conditioning has become a necessity.
On Tuesday, France experienced its hottest day on record, while the United Kingdom recorded its highest temperature ever for June, the Associated Press reported.
And in the US, the nine hottest years on record have all occurred since 2012, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Its hottest year came in 2024, with 17 states breaking their individual records.
But only about 20% of households in Europe have air conditioning, and in previous heat waves throughout US history, the solution wasn’t as simple as cranking up the AC.
Mechanical air-cooling techniques were used as early as the 1910s in the US, such as when the Missouri State Building was cooled at the St. Louis World’s Fair in 1904, according to the Department of Energy. However, it wouldn’t be until the mid-20th century that affordable window units and central air conditioning became common.
And even after it became a typical feature of modern homes, AC wasn’t always people’s primary means of beating the heat. Some people would turn to classics still widely used today, like eating ice cream to cool off, while others would get more creative.
Ice from iceboxes kept food cold — and people, too
Electric refrigeration didn’t become common in American homes until the 1930s, meaning iceboxes were the norm for most families. This required delivery from an iceman, according to the National Museum of American History.
Because of the prevalence of ice, people would sit on ice blocks, fan themselves with the air it emitted, and even lick them, according to the Library of Congress.
Cold drinks and frozen treats were essential
Though beverages like lemonade are still summer staples, they were all the more important before AC. Cold drinks and ice cream were synonymous with relief in the summer. One newspaper recipe from 1915 said lemonade is “family’s best friend when sun is sizzling hot,” per the Library of Congress.
These treats were also important for other reasons. When booze was off the shelves during Prohibition, ice-cream soda was the country’s favorite beverage, National Geographic reported. In 1922, Americans consumed 325 million gallons of the frozen treat.
Handheld fans were substitutes for their electric counterparts
Although the electric fan was invented in 1882 by the electrical engineer Schuyler Skaats Wheeler, early models were dangerous and expensive, and usually reserved for wealthier Americans, according to the Spark Museum of Electrical Invention.
Even as mass production made electric fans more affordable, their widespread use was halted by the Great Depression. It wasn’t until the 1940s that they saw a boom, the Los Angeles Times reported.
This meant handheld fans were a necessity in most settings. Church fans, for example, were especially common in the humid South and would often display artwork or images of religious figures and notable people, per the National Museum of American History.
Families would change their cooking habits based on the heat
If a home didn’t have AC, it usually meant preparing dinner would generate a lot of additional heat.
This meant people would plan around the outdoor temperature. Besides outdoor barbecues, they’d sometimes prepare meals in the cooler hours of the day. A 1919 US Department of Agriculture instruction booklet for homemade fireless cookers advises preparing meals “early in the morning,” citing the convenience of keeping the kitchen cool in the summer.
Children would create makeshift sprinklers out of open fire hydrants
The tradition is perhaps best associated with New York City. The New York Times cited an article from the 20th century that described fire hydrants as “the lifeline of summer, spewing cooling excitement to all around it.”
During a 1925 heat wave, New York City’s fire commissioner even asked the police to guard fire hydrants because of how often children would bust them open.
In the city, the tradition has remained to this day. Residents can request a sprinkler cap, which turns fire hydrants into gentle sprinklers, from their local firehouse, according to the city’s Department of Environmental Protection.
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