The LOC.GOV Wise Guide : Did Jefferson Scream for Ice Cream?

Thomas Jefferson may not have screamed for it, but he certainly had a great fondness for the cold confection.

Thomas Jefferson, third president of the United States, lithograph from the original series painted by Gilbert Stuart for the Messrs

Thomas Jefferson, Ice Cream Recipe, no date

Some of Jefferson's favorite dishes to serve guests at his home in Charlottesville, Va., which he named Monticello, included macaroni, macaroons, peach flambé and ice cream. While in France, Jefferson collected many French recipes for foods such as sauces, fruit tarts, french fries, blood sausages, pigs' feet, rabbit and pigeon. One of the recipes he brought home has since become an American favorite: vanilla ice cream. This was one of the most popular dishes at Monticello, and this recipe was written by Jefferson himself. On the back is his recipe for Savoy cookies to go along with the ice cream.

This story is one of more than 3,000 in the America's Library Web site for kids and families. No matter your age, there is something fun and educational to suit your interests. The first page of this story about Jefferson's love of ice cream features his drawing of a macaroni machine.

For more information on ice cream, go to this special page of Internet resources from the Library's Science, Technology and Business Division.

The Library of Congress is home to the personal papers of 23 presidents, including those of Jefferson. The papers of Washington, Lincoln and Madison are also online. You can access these and other materials relating to our commanders-in chief at the President's Page in another of the Library's extraordinary Web sites, American Memory. More than 10.5 million items from the Library of Congress and its partners await your exploration. You can browse collections by topics such as advertising, African American history, immigration, literature, maps, religion, war and women's history.

A. Thomas Jefferson, third president of the United States, lithograph from the original series painted by Gilbert Stuart for the Messrs. Doggett of Boston, 1828(?). Prints and Photographs Division. Reproduction information: Reproduction No.: LC-USZ62-117117 DLC (b&w film copy neg. of cropped image); Call No.: PGA - Pendleton--Thomas Jefferson ... (A size) <P&P>

B. Thomas Jefferson, Ice Cream Recipe, no date. The Thomas Jefferson Papers Series 1. General Correspondence. 1651-1827. Manuscript Division. Reproduction information: Contact: http://www.loc.gov/rr/askalib/ask-mss.html