I Scream for Ice Cream!

Trip to New York City

The year was 1887.  Jessie May Ward (later to be Garlock), was eleven-years-old.  Her father, Bruce Ward, had promised her a day trip to New York City.  With anticipation at a feverish peak--she tried to keep calm as her mother, grandmother, and Aunt Lib fussed to prepare her for the day. 

It was a business trip for her father--but a day of many firsts for Jessie.  A buggy ride to the train station was nothing new. However, the train to Norwalk and ferrying across Long Island Sound where they would cross the newly constructed and much celebrated Brooklyn Bridge into Manhattan left her awestruck.

With her hair pulled back into a French twist--like her Aunt Lib's, she felt like a fashionable young lady.  Jessie's mind whirled with imagination as she took in all the sights and sounds of the trip.  Even the pain of pinched toes in her new button-top shoes didn't distract her from her surroundings.

Returning on the ferry, tired and full of the eventful day--Jessie relaxed on the deck of the boat, leaning against her father.  A loud voice interrupted her thoughts:  "I Scream, I Scream", is what she heard as a man passed by pushing a large cart.

"Why is that man hollering, 'I scream, I scream'? "  With a perplexed expression, Jessie looked to Bruce Ward for an answer.

Smiling he responded:  "He's not saying, 'I scream', Jessie girl.  He's saying:  'Ice Cream'."  Bruce pronounced the words distinctly to show the difference.

Still not understanding, she asked:  "What is Ice Cream?"

"It's a new confection."  Her father said, offering no further explanation.  (Bruce Ward was a man of few words--seldom saying two, when one would do).

Perking up from her tiredness, Jessie requested:  "May I have some?"

"I think not." Came Bruce's swift reply.

Jessie knew the matter was not up for further discussion.  She simply gazed after the man who continued to move among the passengers calling out; "Ice Cream, ice cream."

Let me offer this note:  Ice cream was always a special treat at the Garlock household, long after it was considered a common dessert, very accessible.  My grandmother relished plain vanilla with a little chocolate syrup on top.  It may seem harsh to us where ice cream is so readily available that Bruce Ward refused his daughter the "new confection" treat.  But, I'm sure he was a bit leery of anything new and as a protective father--didn't want his daughter to eat some concoction off from a push-cart on a boat.