Until I was in my teens our "freezer" was big enough for 2 ice cube trays and about 2 1/2gal of ice cream--so no ironing in the icebox! But my Mom had a large 7-up bottle with a sprinkler top and would wet the ironing, roll it up and it would go into the frig usually just overnite.(small refrig so nothing stayed in it very long!) I asked once and she said that since we did not have A/C, and the clothes needed to "sit" moist before ironing, the frig kept them from mildewing.