Florida doctor invented the icemaker

He was trying to cure yellow fever and wound up inventing the ice machine.

That’s the short version of a story that’s told in a small museum in Apalachicola, Florida. The museum, town and surrounding area are well worth a visit.

Snowbirds traveling the “Forgotten Coast” in northwest Florida can easily miss the John Gorrie Museum State Park, located a little off the main drag in the town’s historic district. In fact, Apalachicola, located on Hwy. 98 lies several miles south of I-10, the main route across the panhandle. But the area is rich in history and beauty, with its river, bay and barrier islands.

Apalachicola was first settled in the early 1800s, with a customs office established in 1821. The bustling port attracted new settlers, including a young doctor, John Gorrie, who arrived in 1833.

Gorrie’s medical services were needed in Apalachicola, where outbreaks of yellow fever were common. In the early 1800s, the fever that killed so many residents of low-lying areas along the Gulf was blamed on the tropical heat and humidity, and the poisonous marsh gas from decaying vegetation.

The museum’s portrait of Dr. Gorrie — the only one known to exist

Gorrie felt the best way to cure his patients was to cool them and improve the quality of the air they breathed. Many of his patients recovered, and eventually the outbreaks subsided. Whether or not Gorrie’s treatment provided cures is debatable, but at least his patients were more comfortable. It would be another 70 years or so before Dr. Walter Reed and other scientists identified mosquito-borne infection as the source of yellow fever.

At first, Gorrie used commercially available ice, hanging containers in the sickroom and letting the cool air flow over the patient. At the time, ice was a valuable import, cut from northern lakes, warehoused and shipped to wealthy buyers who paid from fifty cents to a dollar a pound. Gorrie knew it was important that he make his own.

After some experimentation, Gorrie developed a crude apparatus that produced ice. Gorrie’s machine incorporated two pumps that compressed and rarified air, which flowed through coils surrounded by cooling water. The condensed air was released into a tank containing brine, lowering its temperature below the freezing point and producing ice.

Gorrie and his supporters were not wealthy and lacked the resources to promote the doctor’s invention commercially. Northern ice suppliers scoffed at the idea of anyone manufacturing their product. “Only God can make ice,” was their contention.

In 1851, Gorrie received the first U.S. Patent for a practical icemaker. The process he invented would lead to modern refrigeration and air conditioning.

But Gorrie would receive no compensation for his invention. He made trips to New Orleans to interest backers in investing in his efforts, but failed. In 1855, exhausted, humiliated and depressed by his vain efforts to capitalize on his ice machine, Gorrie died.

Although he failed to market his invention, Gorrie was a leader in the public affairs of Apalachicola. In addition to his medical practice, he served as mayor, postmaster, city treasurer, member of the city council, bank director, secretary of the Masonic Lodge and one of the founders of Trinity Episcopalian Church. His ice machine would later be refined and lead to the development of modern air conditioning.

Today, John Gorrie is memorialized in Apalachicola. Gorrie Square contains his grave site, a monument erected in 1899 by the Southern Ice Exchange, and the Gorrie Museum.

Willie McNair, the ranger in charge, helped me and other visitors examine the museum’s artifacts. Though small, the museum gives a good insight into the area’s history as well as memorializes the genius of the pioneering doctor.

A replica of the patent model for Dr. Gorrie's ice-making machine (photo by Ken Weyand)

Small museums are always on the brink. “We were in danger of being closed last fall because of budget cuts,” McNair said. “But the people here were determined to save the museum, and it’s staying open.”

The museum is part of a state park, operated under the auspices of the Department of Environmental Protection.

Along with artifacts, photos and documents relating to Gorrie, the museum features a half-scale model of his ice-making machine, and the only portrait painted of the doctor during his lifetime. It also contains exhibits and displays illustrating Apalachicola’s history.

First came the cotton trade, which bypassed the town with the coming of the railroads and dwindled even more with Union blockades during the Civil War. Next came the lumber boom, which lasted until the cypress timber ran out. The last boom came with sponges and seafood, harvested from waters in the bay. Today, the area leads the state as a producer of oysters, and is an important supplier of crabs, shrimp and fish.

The river and bay also attracts visitors, including a growing number of boaters and kayakers. And travelers linger in Apalachicola to admire the beautiful old homes and picturesque fishing boats.

The 46th annual Seafood Festival will be held Nov. 6-7 in Apalachicola’s Battery Park. It’s the largest seafood festival in the state. Seafood, arts and crafts and entertainment will be on the menu. Visit www.floridaseafoodfestival.com.

The John Gorrie Museum is open 9 am to noon and 1-5 pm Thursday through Monday. It is closed Tuesdays and Wednesdays, and major holidays. Admission is $1 for adults. Children 5 years old and younger are free. For more information or group tours, call 850-653-9347.

More about John Gorrie can be found at www.knowsouthernhistory.net/Biographies/John_Gorrie

Ken Weyand can be reached at kweyand1@kc.rr.com

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