This is the time of year when most people enjoy frozen treats like ice cream. In the collection at HSMC, we have an emery board advertising a local ice cream maker from our county.
Emery Board Advertising Nelson Dairies, 2023.044.002, HSMC Collection
Nelson Dairies started as a family dairy business in Royersford in 1916. They created their first ice cream in 1935 and became a corporation in 1946. The original flavors were vanilla, chocolate, strawberry, and peach. At their peak in Royersford, the business made over 40 different flavors of ice cream.
You may have noticed the emery board we have mentions Norristown with the phone number 0406. That’s because the company also had a location in Norristown. From about 1936 to 1957, Nelson Dairies appears in the Norristown Directories. They were located at 1920 W. Marshall Street.
1936 Norristown City Directories, HSMC Collection
Their Royersford Ice Cream shop officially closed in 2013 and the next year they rebranded as Nelson’s Creamery under new ownership. According to their website, as of 2019, Nelson’s Creamery was launching new flavors, containers, and design. As of now, I have not been able to locate information stating what became of the company since then.