This May Bank Holiday weekend, soft-serve ice cream will be enjoyed across Ireland — but few know it was two Irish men who invented the ice cream van in 1956. William Aloysius Conway (1922–2004) and James Francis Conway (1927–2006) launched the first soft-serve truck on St. Patrick’s Day in West Philadelphia, selling green ice cream. They soon founded Mister Softee, which grew into America’s largest soft-serve truck franchise and later expanded to Ireland, Britain and the rest of Europe.
AMERICAN PROHIBITION
The love affair with ice cream dates back centuries. Alexander the Great and Roman emperors like Nero and Claudius famously indulged in early versions—mixtures of snow or ice infused with honey, nectar, and fruit juices. By the 1600s, “Cream Ice” had become a delicacy at the royal tables of English and French monarchs.
Ice cream’s popularity in the U.S. is said to have surged during Prohibition (1920–1933), as Americans swapped alcohol for sweet treats. Ice cream parlours thrived, summed up by the 1927 song: “I scream, you scream, we all scream for ice cream.” However, at that time, if you wanted to enjoy an ice cream, you had to visit an ice cream parlour to get your treat.
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THE ICE CREAM VAN
Our story begins in 1956, when the Conway brothers of West Philadelphia were working for the Sweden Freezer Company, a manufacturer of refrigeration equipment. At the time, the company was responding to growing interest in refrigeration machines that could be mounted inside trucks. Spotting a promotional opportunity for St. Patrick’s Day, the Conway brothers decided to sell green ice cream from a refrigerated truck.
They rigged an old Chevrolet panel truck with a large generator and a Sweden Freezer ice cream machine. The setup wasn’t as efficient as a shop-based system, so the green ice cream came out much softer. But on St. Patrick’s Day, no one seemed to mind—crowds lined up for the soft green ice cream at just 10 cents per cone, and the Conway brothers knew they were on to something.
The Conway brothers pitched the idea of selling soft ice cream from a truck to the Sweden Freezer Company, but the company wasn’t convinced. So, the brothers struck out on their own, founding Mister Softee in a West Philadelphia garage. In 1958, they moved the growing business to Runnemede, New Jersey and have been there ever since. At its peak in the late 1960s, Mister Softee had 1,000 trucks serving soft ice cream across 15 states. Today, it remains America’s oldest and largest soft ice cream truck franchise, with over 640 trucks run by about 275 franchisees in 19 states.
ICE CREAM IN IRELAND
American soft-serve ice cream is a different tradition from the hard ice cream sold in Ireland as far back as the 1850s. Early Irish vendors used hand carts and horse-drawn wagons, ringing bells to draw in customers, particularly in coastal resorts. By the early 1900s, motorised vehicles selling hard ice cream had begun to appear. Then in 1926, to make use of surplus milk and cream, the Hughes brothers began making ice cream—founding HB, which would grow into Ireland’s most beloved ice cream brand.
By 1961, ice cream vans had become a familiar sight across Ireland. According to The Telegraph, at the peak of their popularity in the 1960s, around 30,000 soft-serve ice cream vans were operating across Ireland and Britain.
JINGLES
Since the 1960s, the cheerful chimes of ice cream vans have become a familiar sound across Ireland and Britain, often heard outside schools or winding through housing estates. Sellers quickly learned that catchy tunes attracted customers, just as Mister Softee did in the U.S. with its melody “Jingle and Chimes,” composed by Les Waas. Inspired by this, Dominic Facchino founded Mr Whippy in Birmingham in 1958 and helped popularise the use of Greensleeves—a traditional English folk tune—linking it to ice cream vans across these islands and adding a nostalgic, local charm.
Ice Cream van jingles have had other uses as well as according to a report in The Examiner, the PSNI (Police Service of Northern Ireland) dispersed a youth riot in 2010 by playing calming ice-cream van music, knowing its appeal to young people. The officer behind the tactic later apologised for what he called an “inappropriate” use of humour.
Enjoy your soft-serve ice cream this weekend and thank the Conway brothers!
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Sources of Information and Photo Credits:
Auto & Design Magazine
Behind the Scenes at Mr. Softee’s Ice Cream Truck Garage – The Drive
Carole Nash Insurance
Ice-cream vans, by Luke Stephenson – in pictures: The Guardian
Mister Softee Website
The History of Ice Cream – International Dairy Foods Association
The Independent
The Mr Softee Story Paperback – Steve Tillyer
