Portable BBQ

Esky late 1950s

The Esky – short for “eskimo” – is an Australian innovation and a national symbol, synonymous with our outdoor lifestyle. Everyone in Australia uses “esky” as the generic term for a portable cooler box. The first ice box sold under the trade mark Esky was manufactured by Malley's in 1888. In 1952 they launched the first portable cooler named the Esky Auto Ice Box, reflecting increased leisure time and mobility in the 1950s and 60s, thanks to the private motor car. Eskies were used to keep food and drinks cold for picnics, barbecues, camping and caravanning. Early eskies like this one were heavy and not very roomy by today’s standards.

The term “barbecue” was little used in Australia until the mid-1800s, and then normally only in reference to events held in America. Giant public feasts, including whole roasted bullocks, certainly occurred but they were not called barbeques. The first use of the term for an Australian event seems to be a report of the Waverley Bowls Club’s “Leg o’ Mutton Barbecue” in 1903.

It took decades to move from the public feast to the private, from the whole beast to chops and sausages. But by the 1950s the idea of the barbecue had taken hold, eventually becoming an ingrained part of our national psyche. From the 1950s popular magazines gave detailed instructions for building your own brick barbecue.

This small, portable, wood-fired barbecue would have pleased purists who hold that smoke and charcoal are the essential elements of a barbecue.

Portable ice box, 'Esky' brand. It is painted leaf green. There are two handles on the side and two metal catches on the front. The inside is lined with galvanised metal and has a rubber seal.