Pic of the Week: National Ice Cream Days of the Past

In 2010 Jennifer Harbster, my co-blogger, did a post about ice cream that mentioned the beginning of National Ice Cream Month in 1984, but I ran across this advertisement in Chronicling America that ran in the Washington Times on May 26, 1920. This was long before Ronald Reagan designated July as National Ice Cream Month (and the third Sunday of the month as National Ice Cream Day) in 1984.  While it doesn’t seem to have been official, it just goes to show that “celebrating” ice cream has a long history.

While this year National Ice Cream Day was July 15 you  still have time “celebrate” this month so enjoy a scoop.

Cockles, Motto Lozenges, and Sweethearts

I was recently at a dinner party where the gracious hostess embellished the dining room table with Sweethearts, also known as Conversation Hearts and Sweet Talks. As you can imagine, the guests questioned the history of these sweethearts and turned to me for an answer. I promised that when I returned to the Library that …

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Weight Loss Through the Ages

My mother has tried nearly every contemporary diet ever conceived, which has resulted in her becoming a collector of diet books. Through my mother’s obsession with diet programs, I have become familiar with a variety of weight loss fads and trends–from the Cabbage Soup Diet to the Blood Type Diet, and from the Flat Belly …

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Super (Advertising) Bowl!

The Library attracts many researchers looking for older print advertising and as a result developed The Emergence of Advertising in America: 1850-1920 collection in American Memory using the collections of Duke University, and a publication from a couple of past Library employees, Advertising in America: the first 200 years. It is interesting to contrast the …

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