Eskimo Pie is a dessert made of vanilla ice cream and hard chocolate on a stick, invented by Christian Kent Nelson in 1919. Originally called the I-Scream-Bar, it was renamed and sold to different companies, with one million sold daily by 1922. Nelson continued to work with the company until his retirement in 1961. Eskimo Pie is now manufactured by CoolBrands International.
An Eskimo cake is a type of dessert made with vanilla ice cream and covered in hard chocolate. This combination is skewered on a thin wooden stick, which is used as a handle. The term Eskimo Pie is a registered name for this desert, which is wrapped in foil.
Eskimo cake was invented by a high school teacher named Christian Kent Nelson in 1919 or 1920. He claimed he got the idea for Eskimo cake when he saw a boy trying to decide whether or not he wanted to buy ice cream or candy, but only had enough money to buy one. After watching this fight, he decided to combine the two. This original invention was called the I-Scream-Bar.
The I-Scream-Bar was almost immediately successful, which prompted Nelson to partner with candy maker Russel C. Stover. The invention was then renamed Eskimo Pie and the partners sold their manufacturing rights to different companies, but still collected royalties from their sales. By 1922, one million Eskimo Pies were being sold every day. The success of the Eskimo cake has reportedly driven cocoa bean prices up 50%. Nonetheless, Stover decided to sell his share of the business soon after.
In 1924, Nelson sold the company to RS Reynolds, the company that manufactured the foil wrappers that were used to cover the Eskimo Pie treats. The patent for the Eskimo pie was invalidated in 1929, but Nelson stayed on board with the RS Reynolds company. It is reported that Nelson originally retired after selling the rights to Eskimo Pie to RS Reynolds, but later joined the company out of sheer boredom.
In 1935, Nelson invented a new, more efficient way to make and ship Eskimo pie. He continued to work with the company until his retirement in 1961. Nelson died in 1992, when he was 99 years old. Eskimo Pie Corporation was also formed in 1992. Today, Eskimo Pie is manufactured by CoolBrands International. The company purchased Eskimo Pie Corporation in 2000.
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