Jacob Fussell

C. Jacob Fussell (February 24, 1819 – April 10, 1912) was an American manufacturer of ice cream who was known as the first person to commercially distribute ice cream in the United States.

Early life C. Jacob Fussell was born on February 24, 1819, in Little Falls, near Fallston, Harford County, Maryland. He was from a Quaker family and descended from Solomon Fussell, who emigrated to America from Yorkshire, England. He apprenticed with a stove fitter as a teenager.

In 1856, Fussell served as a secretary at the 1856 Republican National Convention in Philadelphia.

In 1856, Fussell opened a factory in Washington, D.C. During the Civil War, the United States Army offered to purchase his operation, but he refused. In 1870, Fussell added three partners to his business in New York City, Stephen Dunnington, Nathaniel V. Woodhill and James Madison Horton. The business operated as Jacob Fussell and Company and sold ice cream for per gallon to hotels and per gallon for orders of smaller quantities. Horton bought out the other partners and would rename the company as J. M. Horton Ice Cream Company. Fussell befriended and taught Perry Brazelton of Mount Pleasant, Iowa, how to make ice cream.

Fussell died on April 10, 1912, at his home at 1457 14th Street NW in Washington, D.C. He was buried at Oak Hill Cemetery.

Legacy

In 2012, a historical marker was dedicated to commemorate that Fussell was the first person to commercially distribute ice cream in the United States. He was also known as the "Father of the Ice Cream Industry".