The First Ice Cream Cones in Shelby Were Made by Hand at a Carnival

The very first ice cream cones ever sold in Shelby appeared around 1906 or 1907 at a carnival tent set up where the post office later stood. These were not factory-made cones. They were made on the spot from batter cooked on a stove beside the ice cream freezer. While still warm, the cone was rolled up by hand into a cornucopia shape and the ice cream was placed inside. If you weren’t careful, the ice cream would drip straight out of the hole in the bottom of the cone. This was Shelby’s first introduction to eating ice cream in a cone instead of a dish.