Sweet Beginnings: A Scoop of Ice Cream History in Ithaca
Ithaca, New York—known for its intellectual vigor and natural beauty—also holds a delightfully sweet place in the history of American desserts. Beyond the Finger Lakes region’s celebrated wine and dairy production, Ithaca boasts a rich connection to ice cream that dates back over a century.
The city’s most famous contribution to frozen treats is the invention of the ice cream sundae. On Sunday afternoon, April 3, 1892, following services at the Unitarian Church, Reverend John M. Scott stopped by the Platt & Colt Pharmacy in downtown Ithaca. Shop proprietor Chester C. Platt served bowls of vanilla ice cream topped with cherry syrup and a candied cherry. Inspired, the men named the creation the “Cherry Sunday” to honor the day it was made. This dessert became a local favorite, and by October of that year, advertisements for the “Cherry Sunday” were already appearing in the Ithaca Daily Journal—making Ithaca the first documented home of the ice cream sundae. (1)
Ithaca Daily Journal, October 5 1892
The 1920s and '30s saw a boom in local dairies, including the Cornell Dairy, which began producing ice cream as part of its teaching and research mission. Cornell students studying food science and agriculture experimented with new pasteurization and flavor infusion techniques that would eventually influence regional standards. According to university archives, some of the earliest known recipes for Cornell Dairy ice cream date to 1927, when students began testing butterfat ratios in campus kitchens. (2)
In 1936, Leo and Sylvia Guentert launched Purity Ice Cream. A Cornell graduate, Leo was driven by a belief that he could craft a better chocolate ice cream—he did, and more. “The Ice Cream of the Finger Lakes” became a cherished part of Ithaca’s culinary landscape. The Purity factory, built in 1953 on the corner of Meadow and Cascadilla Streets, still stands as a local institution, scooping nostalgia with every cone. (3)
Today, Ithaca’s ice cream heritage lives on not only in longtime favorites like Purity Ice Cream, but in new traditions that celebrate our frosty claim to fame. That’s why The History Center in Tompkins County is excited to announce the first-ever Sundae Showdown, a scoop-tacular event held in the city that started it all.
Sundae Showdown – April 20th, 1–4pm, Ithaca Downtown Conference Center
This delicious competition invites sundae lovers from across the country to submit their most iconic sundae recipes for a chance at ice cream immortality. Finalist recipes—selected by celebrity judges—will be recreated by the Ithaca Downtown Conference Center’s culinary team for the public to taste and vote on. Tickets include samples of each finalist sundae, a voting ballot, and an ice cream tasting passport.
From the Cherry Sunday of 1892 to the bold new flavor combinations of 2025, Ithaca continues to be a place where dessert history is not only preserved—but made. Don’t miss your chance to create your own legacy in the Home of the Ice Cream Sundae.
Tickets and recipe submission: www.sundaeshowdown.com
References:
“The History of the Ice Cream Sundae,” What's Cooking America, accessed April 2025, https://whatscookingamerica.net/history/icecream/sundae.htm.
Cornell University Library. “Cornell Dairy Records, 1925–1935.” Rare Manuscript Collections, Ithaca, NY.
Mark H. Anbinder, “Happy Birthday, Purity Ice Cream!” 14850 Dining, March 9, 2018, https://www.14850.com/030918783-purity-ice-cream-birthday/.
