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Frederic Tudor

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19th-century American businessman

This article is about the Bostonian businessman known as the "Ice King". For the British admiral, see Frederick Tudor. For the New York businessman known as the "Ice King", see Charles W. Morse.

Frederic Tudor<br>Born(1783-09-04)September 4, 1783<br>Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.<br>DiedFebruary 6, 1864(1864-02-06) (aged 80)<br>Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.<br>Resting place<br>King's Chapel Burying Ground, Boston (originally)[1]Other name"Ice King"Known forEstablishing the ice tradeSpouse<br>Euphemia Fenno<br>(m. 1834)​<br>FatherWilliam TudorRelativesWilliam II (brother)<br>Frederic Tudor (September 4, 1783 – February 6, 1864) was an American businessman and merchant. Known as Boston's "Ice King ", he was the founder of the Tudor Ice Company, one of the first American multi-national businesses, and a pioneer of the international ice trade in the early 19th century. He made a fortune shipping ice cut from New England ponds to ports in the Caribbean, Europe, and as far away as India and Hong Kong.[2]

Career and family<br>[edit]

External videos Frederick Tudor - the Ice King, Boston History, 1:35<br>Tudor was the third son of William Tudor, a wealthy Boston lawyer, and Delia Jarvis Tudor. Although his older brother William Tudor (1779–1830) would become one of Boston's leading literary figures, Tudor spurned the chance to be educated at Harvard and from the age of 13 occupied himself with business. After a visit to the Caribbean, he decided he could make a fortune exporting ice from the ponds of Massachusetts.

In 1806 (age 23), Tudor bought his first brig, Favorite, to carry ice cut from his father's farm in Saugus 1,500 miles (2,400 km) from Charlestown to Martinique.[3][4][5] It left dock on February 10, 1806, to the following report in the Boston Gazette: "No joke. A vessel has cleared at the Custom House for Martinique with a cargo of ice. We hope this will not prove a slippery speculation."[6] While he secured a cargo of ice, a vessel in which to ship it, and formulated his plan of operation, he sent his brother William and his cousin, James Savage, ahead to obtain a monopoly from the various governments of the islands: "We wish you to procure from the gov' of Cuba a grant exclusive in which we offer you either to take a conces' of half or procure the privilege for us & we engage to pay you one thousand dollars with reasonable charges, in obtaining it you, however, to determine which you will do & write to that effect as early as possible." Although much of the ice melted during the three-week journey south, he did manage to sell much of what remained on board for a loss of $4,500 overall. However, in the subsequent year, Tudor realized severe financial losses on three shipments to Havana in the brig Trident.[5]

A few factors were in Tudor's favor. Hiring ships was cheap because many left Boston empty to collect cargo later in the West Indies. Ice was free for the labor of cutting it. Sawdust was also free as a waste product of the lumber industry and insulated ice effectively.[6]<br>Tudor had his first profits in 1810 when his gross sales amounted to about $7,400, then increasing to just short of $9,000; but of that, he received only $1,000 owing to the "villainous conduct" of his agent. At this point, his personal debts far outweighed his income, and he spent parts of 1812 and 1813 in debtor's prison. By 1815, however, he had managed to borrow $2,100, both to buy ice and to pay for a new ice house in Havana. It was a double-shelled structure, twenty-five feet square on its outside dimension, nineteen feet square on the interior, and sixteen feet high, holding some 150 tons of ice. "Pursued by sheriffs to the very wharf" in Boston, Tudor set sail for Havana on November 1, 1815.

Frederic Tudor at a young age<br>By 1816, Tudor was shipping ice from Massachusetts to Cuba with ever-increasing efficiency and decided to try his hand at importing Cuban fruit to New York. In August of that year, he borrowed $3,000 (at 40% interest) for a shipload of limes, oranges, bananas, and pears, preserving it with 15 tons of ice and 3 tons of hay. The experiment ended in disaster as virtually all the fruit rotted during the month-long voyage, leaving Tudor with several thousand dollars' worth of new debt. Still, he pressed on, opening up new markets in three southern U.S. cities (Charleston, South Carolina; Savannah, Georgia; and New Orleans, Louisiana).

Tudor spent the next few years experimenting with various kinds of insulation. Ice was packed aboard ship with wood shavings, sawdust, or rice chaff on its outside surfaces to insulate it against heat. The blocks were also stacked together like well-fitted masonry. He constructed...