As September becomes our norm, the vast majority of school-aged children will have entered back into another year of school. For many parents, this is a relief. The actual student, however, most likely does not share in this exaltation. To soften yet another pendulum swing in a families lifestyle from lazy days of summer to a return to alarm clocks and dressing for the day in the gray mist of dawn, O.C.’s Hair Police suggests a family excursion to one of the many O.C.’s Ice Cream and Confectioner Parlors!
America has a rich history of the consumption of ice cream. The first evidence of ice cream in the U.S. was documented in a letter by a guest of Maryland Governor William Bladen in 1744. President Thomas Jefferson’s vanilla ice cream recipe has been compared to a modern-day Baked Alaska. At the second inaugural banquet for President Madison in 1831, Dolly Madison served a delectable strawberry ice cream creation. Jacob Fussell, a Baltimore Milk Dealer, pioneered the manufacturing of ice cream in the U.S. in the year 1851 after the development of insulated ice houses. From that moment on, ice cream transitioned from being an elitist delicatessen to becoming a mainstream staple throughout our great nation.
Soda Fountain shops thrived in the 19th Century and the “soda jerk” emerged. World War II utilized ice cream as a morale booster to its troops as units tried to outdo each other in the amount of ice cream served. The “floating ice cream parlor” in 1945 was built for sailors in the Western Pacific while America celebrated with ice cream when the war came to an end. Americans consumed 20 quarts of ice cream per person in 1946 one year after the “floating ice cream parlor” took to the high seas!!
After 30 years of a fairly constant production of ice cream, specialty ice cream and confectioner parlors began to surge once more and have continued to do so since the 1970’s. While ice cream tantalizes the taste buds, it also generates a common bond of delight in the mixture of flavors consumed that instantaneously cause one to want to share with others in the discovery! Life slows and our troubles are forgotten with each mouthful while we cling to the exhilaration of a communal ice cream moment.
For parents and kids alike, an exploration to the modern day “Soda Fountain” may be the perfect remedy to assist in easing back into the realities of this “school days are here again” time of year. O.C.’s Hair Police offers the following establishments to get you started. We most certainly hope that you and your family try more than just one of our suggestions!!
Fun Facts of the Origin of Ice Cream: Evidence of ice cream dates as far back as the second century, B.C. when Alexander the Great was known to be fond of honey and nectar flavored ice and snow. King Solomon quite possibly would be a Juice Bar regular today as it has been referenced he enjoyed iced drinks during harvesting. Runners regularly went to the mountains to retrieve snow for Nero Claudius Caesar (A.D. 54-86) to then flavor it with fruits and juices during the Roman Empire.
Derivatives of ice cream circulated through Europe when Marco Polo returned to Italy with a recipe similar to today’s “sherbet” from the Middle East. England at the same time was seemingly discovering ice cream when Charles I regularly offered “Cream ice” at his table. Paris, France was the first known country to offer ice cream to the general public in 1660 at Café Procope introduced by Sicilian Procopio. The recipe blended milk, cream, butter, and eggs. Seemingly, throughout the ages a scoop of ice cream has served up drips of happiness. May this universal truth continue for you and your family as you find your very own drips of happiness in each and every scoop as well!
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