1946 – 1968

Although the family grocery store had been in business since the mid-1880’s a time came where an additional service was needed by the local community.  World War II had just ended and the men were coming home. Aspen’s population was also on the rise with an influx of families from all over the world including former enemies who were now friends, from Eastern Europe and beyond.  Aspen was growing and with it new businesses was opening every day.

Aspen’s skiing industry was just taking shape.  Germans, Austrians and Swiss expatriates were moving here for the skiing and due to the welcome reception they were getting in a valley that reminded many of them of the homes they had left behind during the war.  Refrigeration technologies were still in the “ice age” if you will and no one knew more about it than Lawrence Elisha.  Lawrence along with Henry Beck and Albert Bishop, the owners of the “Beck & Bishop” grocery store, formed a partnership and opened “The Frozen Food Locker Plant.”

At the time the grocery store occupied about a third of the ground floor of the Wheeler Opera House building along with some storage space in the basement.  The rest of the main floor sat empty and it was a perfect location for The Frozen Food Locker Plant.  Although there was no storefront for this new venture the three partners knew they could easily run the business from the back of the building and through the butcher’s department in the grocery store.

It was a big undertaking to get the business off the ground.  A large compressor with ammonia as the coolant was installed along with a large loading dock.  Over the loading dock a new crane with rails back into the freezer was also installed. The meat locker had a number of rooms: one was for “fast” freezing the meat, another was for cold storage and another was for aging the meat at a slightly warmer temperature.  Even more space was needed for skinning the animals and processing the meats. 

In a relatively short period of time the business grew to become a very busy place and was supporting just about every restaurant and family in the valley.  Customers could rent drawers that were about 13 cubic feet (3ft x 2.5ft x 18in) to store their meats until they needed them.  They also offered a service of skinning, processing, aging and storing wild game meats; although, all the tools used for those meats had to be thoroughly cleaned before and after use to ensure that no domestic meats could be contaminated.  All meat processing work was done at night after the grocery store had closed for the day.  For special cuts of meat, the customers could put in their orders and pick them up the next day from the butcher’s counter in the grocery store.

The “fast” freezer room was a 10 foot by 10 foot room and it was used to freeze the meats for about 10 to 12 hours at -20 degrees.  From there the meats could be moved in to the regular freezer that was kept at a constant 0 to 10 degrees.  The regular freezer was where the customers’ drawers were located as well as some of the hanging meats that were not in the warmer aging room.  The warmer section was where the half-cows the store purchased were kept hanging as well as the wild game until processed.

Customers could even bring in their game meat to have the pelts removed and discarded or returned to them.  The store charged a flat fee for this service which was usually done by my father except during very busy times.  Once removed, the skins would be coated in salt and rolled up.  The pelts, or skins, would also be available for other business or individuals if the original customer had no use for them.  Processing and storing the pelts was one of the “worst” aspects of the job according to my dad.  On one occasion my father skinned 20 deer in a single night, setting a personal record.

In processing the meat special care was made to ensure that no contamination ever took place.  Not only were the utensils cleaned between processing game meats and domestic beef, but there was a separate set of tools and butcher’s blocks to process the poultry as well.  Back then, hamburger meat came to the store “un-ground” in large boxes.  The meat was ground based on customer requirements and was always the highest quality and free from food borne contaminates commonly found today.

During very busy times the work became a family effort.  Even the kids were asked to help.  My mother had the best handwriting of anyone and was always asked to do the package labeling.  The kids helped keep the place clean while the others did the processing and heavy lifting.

Another service The Frozen Food Locker Plant provided was to the local game warden.  Whenever an animal was confiscated it would be brought to the Meat Locker where the evidence was removed and stored and the meat was processed and given to needy families or to the hospital.

The Frozen Food Locker Plant provided a valuable service to the local restaurants and families alike for nearly 22 years, only closing its doors when the grocery store was sold.  The Wheeler Opera House was long overdue for extensive renovation and the partners knew its time had come.  Aspen’s history is filled with stories of local businesses that have come and gone; sadly, many of them have been long forgotten.

Many of my stories are about singular events or about the people and places we all grew up with.  This story tells of a great business, the people who worked there and the many who benefited from it.  I am proud of my family’s history that dates back to 1883 when we came to town.  This story is one of my favorites.