Thomas Jefferson Didn’t Introduce Ice Cream to America
The Claim
Former President of the United States Thomas Jefferson introduced ice cream to America.
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Emerging story
The claim has existed in some form for over a century. It took off on social media once more during the summer months of 2021.
Misbar’s Analysis
In 1789, Jefferson came back from France with a chef renowned for frozen dessert concoctions. Jefferson later wrote down an ice cream recipe, currently housed at the Library of Congress.
However, although Jefferson did help popularize the sweet treat in America, ice cream was a popular dessert in parts of the country for over half a century before his trip to Monticello.
Ice cream recipes appear in English-language cookbooks in America as early as the beginning of the 18th century. Most famously, Hannah Glasse’s 1747 The Art of Cookery, Made Plain and Easy, which was very popular in the 13 colonies, contains an ice cream recipe.
