National Ice Cream Day is celebrated on the third Sunday in July and National Ice Cream Month is celebrated each year in July in the United States. The celebrations were originated by Joint resolution 298, which was sponsored by Senator Walter Dee Huddleston of Kentucky on May 17, 1984. The resolution proclaimed the month of July 1984 as "National Ice Cream Month" and July 15, 1984, as "National Ice Cream Day". It was signed into law by President Ronald Reagan on July 9, 1984 with Presidential Proclamation 5219. Even though the resolution only mentioned a specific month and day in 1984, the celebrations have held up in the years since, publicized by ice cream manufacturers.
When you get the urge for a snack on a hot, humid summer night, what's the first thing that comes to your mind? That's right....Ice Cream! Therefore, it's only fitting that ice cream be given it's own special day. On this day, we hope you enjoy an ice cream cone, a sundae, or a milk shake. Set the diet aside and splurge a little...have one of each!
In 1984, President Ronald Reagan proclaimed July as National Ice Cream Month. He also established National Ice Cream Day as the third Sunday in the month. Ice cream is nutritious. A little heavy on the sugar and calories, ice cream is otherwise good for you. Its base ingredient is milk, which is loaded with healthy vitamins and minerals.
Did you know? Charles E. Minches of St. Louis, Missouri is credited with inventing the ice cream cone. On July 23, 1904 at the World's Fair in St. Louis, he filled a pastry cone with two scoops of ice cream to make the first ice cream cone. There is some controversy over this claim. Italo Marchiony of New York City filed a patent for the ice cream cone months before the fair opened. And, he was selling lemon ice in cones as early as 1896.
About Ice Cream Day in December: There is also a celebration of Ice Cream Day on December 13th. We found no factual information about this day. We suspect that it evolved from some local event. Perhaps a school ice cream social somehow took on an undocumented, national recognition as a special day.
