As an African American in the ice cream business, I thought it important to know what contributions African Americans have made to the industry. To my surprise (not sure why I was surprised), the history of ice cream is rich with contributions from African Americans. This month, I want to share a couple with all of our fans and supporters for Black History Month.

To the right, is a picture of Alfred Cralle and his invention. That’s right, he invented the ice cream scoop and actually had it patented (see second pic!)

As most of our fans know, Hammond’s pays tribute to the history of the ice scoop in all of our stores, and there is one on our wall in North Park that is almost identical to Alfred’s original design (see third pic.) It feels good to know that I’m not only in a business I love but also connected to its legacy.