Vented soffit – 140 yr old house – GreenBuildingAdvisor

Hey – homeowner here, with a 140 year old Queen Anne. With all the snow this winter, I’ve got major ice dam issues. My attic desperately needs additional sealing & insulation, but my question is around the soffit. It’s currently not vented, given it was built in the 1880s.

Should it be replaced with something vented while I’m tackling the sealing & insulation? Any issues or concerns with retrofitting something this old with vents?